"As expected..."
The expressions of almost all the students in the class turned grim. Peaceful days were always limited, and it was time for another special exam.
Compared to regular exams, the content of special exams was unpredictable and could also lead to students being expelled.
However, Saiki noticed that this special exam might be different from the previous ones.
[To use such rules... It seems that after Acting Chairman Tsukishiro's arrival, the entire school will undergo earth-shaking changes.]
Saiki clearly heard Chabashira Sae's thoughts.
'Acting Chairman Tsukishiro? I remember the chairman of this school is Sakayanagi's father. Did he leave for some reason?'
Saiki thought to himself.
'And what exactly are these changes?'
"According to previous years, the exam would be held on March 8th."
Chabashira Sae's earlier smile had completely disappeared, replaced by a serious expression.
"But don't relax. The final exam next week will definitely be difficult as well."
[Because this time, there will definitely be expulsions in the class—not just in ours, but in every class.]
Chabashira Sae's thoughts also reached Saiki's ears almost simultaneously.
'There will definitely be expulsions?'
Saiki narrowed his eyes slightly. Chabashira Sae's belief wasn't due to a lack of faith in Class B's abilities, but rather because it seemed that this exam was designed to ensure someone would be expelled.
This was completely different from previous exams. Even though the rules of the last special exam were very harsh, and it was entirely possible for students to be expelled due to the actions of others, the possibility of no one being expelled was still very high. As long as everyone achieved a decent score, the entire class could pass, and that's exactly what happened in the end.
But would this exam force a student to be expelled?
This seemed to deviate from the school's previous philosophy.
"Because this year's situation is a bit different from last year."
Chabashira Sae continued.
"Different?"
Hirata Yosuke, sensing the seriousness of the situation and the uneasy atmosphere, immediately asked.
[Chabashira-sensei's tone and expression seem off.]
"This year, not a single student has been expelled after the final exams. At this stage, having no expulsions is unprecedented in this school's history."
"That means we're outstanding, right?"
Ike Kanji chimed in.
"Yes, the school acknowledges that—normally, this would be something to celebrate. As the school, we hope to see as many students graduate as possible. However, the fact that this deviates from the original plan also implies a problem."
Chabashira Sae's brows furrowed, and her tone grew heavier.
"The school has considered that no first-year students have been expelled—"
Chabashira Sae paused for a moment but eventually forced out the words that were stuck in her throat.
"So the school has decided to hold an additional special exam starting tomorrow, March 2nd, Tuesday."
She wrote "March 2nd, Tuesday" and "Additional Special Exam" on the blackboard.
As soon as she said this, the entire class erupted.
[What? A special exam starting tomorrow?]
[We have no time to prepare at all!]
[Just because no one was expelled, they're adding an exam? That's ridiculous!]
"Ah! What is this? An additional special exam? What kind of nonsense is this!? Just because no one was expelled, they're adding an exam? This is something only a child would do!"
Ike Kanji loudly expressed his confusion.
"This is quite different from how things have been so far."
Horikita Suzune also muttered softly.
[I completely agree with you, Ike, but this is reality. The rules are controlled by those in power. As students, you can't refuse, and as teachers, neither can we.]
Chabashira Sae's gaze swept over Ike Kanji, and then she continued,
"Only students who pass this special exam will be able to take the special exam on March 8th."
Chabashira Sae continued,
"It's natural for you to feel dissatisfied. Implementing a special exam that wasn't originally planned, even if it's just one more than before, will inevitably become a burden for students. As a fact, the teachers and I take this matter very seriously. However, the content of the special exam is extremely simple, and the expulsion rate is less than 3% per class, which isn't very high."
Although Chabashira Sae said this, Saiki noticed a hint of incongruity in her words.
[Chabashira-sensei specifically mentioned the expulsion rate? This is something she never mentioned before. The uncertainty of each exam was always too great, but this time she gave a clear expulsion rate.]
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, sitting nearby, also picked up on the key information in Chabashira Sae's words.
[Less than 3%... Why 3%? Each class has about 40 students, so less than 3% would mean exactly one person... This implies that this exam will inevitably result in one expulsion.]
"So what kind of exam is it?"
Hirata Yosuke asked anxiously.
"About that, you must be feeling uneasy, but there's no need to be afraid. The additional special exam has nothing to do with intelligence or physical ability—on the day of the exam, it will only involve a simple task that anyone can easily accomplish. Yes, it's something like writing your name on the exam paper. If the chance of being expelled is 3%, then it should be considered quite low, right?"
Chabashira Sae said slowly,
"The name of the special exam is—Class Vote."
"Class... vote...?"
As Chabashira Sae wrote the name of the special exam on the blackboard, she continued,
"Let me explain the rules of the special exam. The school requires you to evaluate your classmates over the next four days, starting tomorrow. Then, on the day of the exam, Saturday, you will vote for three students you believe deserve praise and three students you believe deserve criticism. That's all."
The rules sounded incredibly simple, but this only made the students more confused.
[Voting? What's going on?]
[How can this even be considered an exam?]
[The simpler the rules, the more likely there's something hidden, right?]
The students grew even more uneasy after hearing the rules.
[Is the exam using the votes to determine grades? If I'm not mistaken, the student who receives the most praise votes might receive a reward, while the student who receives the most criticism votes might face the risk of expulsion. Is this exam about controlling the class vote?]
At this moment, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was trying to guess the nature of this exam.
Meanwhile, Saiki was focused on something else.
'What? Saturday? Does this mean I won't be able to rest this Saturday?'
For Saiki, the biggest impact of this exam was that his precious rest time might be taken up by it.
"So, how will the exam determine the students' grades?"
Hirata Yosuke immediately asked.
"I'll explain that next."
Chabashira Sae gripped the chalk and continued writing on the blackboard,
"The key to this special exam lies in the concentration of praise votes and criticism votes... In short, the student who receives the most praise votes will be given a special reward. This special reward isn't personal points but a new system called 'Protection Points.'"
[Protection Points?]
The attention of everyone in the room was immediately drawn to this new term.
"Protection Points are a right that can nullify expulsion. Even if you fail an exam, as long as you have these points, you can nullify expulsion as many times as you have points. However, these points cannot be transferred to others."
The moment they heard this, all the students were stunned.
If faced with expulsion, a student would need at least 20 million personal points and 300 class points to save themselves—but Protection Points could directly offset this.
These points were essentially worth at least 20 million points.
"You all understand how powerful these points are, right? They are essentially worth 20 million points. Of course, for outstanding students who don't have to worry about expulsion, they might not seem as valuable."
Chabashira Sae said slowly,
"But... what happens to the three students who receive the most criticism votes?"
While the others were still in shock, Hirata Yosuke asked with a serious expression.
"Nothing. The only student who will be punished is the one who receives the most criticism votes in the class. The other students, no matter how many criticism votes they receive, will not be punished. The purpose of this additional special exam is to determine the top student and the bottom student."
"What kind of punishment will that be?"
Hirata Yosuke continued to ask.
But by the time he asked, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka and Saiki had already guessed the final outcome.
"This additional special exam is different from all the exams so far in one very significant way. The reason this exam is being held is to address the cause of the additional exam—no one being expelled. The difficulty of the exam itself, as I explained, is very simple. This exam won't be inconvenient for students with low academic ability or those who aren't good at sports. However, why would the school prepare such an extraordinary reward as Protection Points? It's because this exam is unlikely to allow you to advance to the second year without any expulsions."
Chabashira Sae narrowed her eyes slightly,
"That's right, the school will... expel the student who comes in last."
As soon as these words were spoken, the entire class erupted.
Meanwhile, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka fell into deep thought.
[The content of the exam should be decided by the chairman, right? That's Sakayanagi's father. I've only met him once, so I can't fully grasp his nature, but he doesn't seem like the type to hold such an unreasonable exam... Could it be...]
A thought occurred to Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
[Is that man behind this?]
'Yare yare, is that what's going on?'
Saiki tilted his head slightly, his gaze shifting to Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's face.
Even without using his powers, he could guess the general situation.
It was likely that Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's troublesome father had used some means to replace Chairman Sakayanagi with Tsukishiro, leading to this action.
His goal was simple: to expel Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
'As long as that man's plans don't involve me, I don't care.'
Saiki thought to himself.
"You probably think this is very unreasonable, and as a teacher, I feel the same way. But since it's been decided, we have no choice but to comply. Other than following the rules and taking on the special exam, there's nothing else we can do."
Chabashira Sae shook her head. These were her true feelings. She didn't agree with an exam that forced students to be expelled.
Especially since it put her trump card at risk.
Chabashira Sae's gaze shifted to Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, and then she continued,
"Time is limited before the voting day, so let me continue explaining the rules. The results of the votes for the most praised and criticized students in the class will be made public immediately after the exam. In other words, everyone's results will be revealed, but the identities of who voted for whom will remain anonymous."
"Additionally, each praise vote and criticism vote will affect each other—if you receive 10 criticism votes but 30 praise votes, the net result will be 20 positive votes. You cannot vote for yourself, whether for praise or criticism. Also, you cannot vote for the same person multiple times, and abstaining is not allowed. Whether it's praise or criticism, you must fill in three names. Even if you're sick and take a leave of absence, you must still participate."
"This special exam won't be valid unless a 'top student and bottom student' are determined. Whether intentionally or by chance, if the voting results end up with everyone having zero votes, the voting will be repeated—in short, it will continue endlessly until someone is expelled."
Chabashira Sae explained the rules of the exam. It was clear that this exam had been meticulously designed, leaving no room for loopholes.
The inevitable outcome of this exam was that someone would be expelled.
'Yare yare, just when I thought I could finally have some peaceful days, this happens.'
Saiki sighed inwardly.
...
Meanwhile, in the chairman's office.
Tsukishiro Tokinari picked up his phone and dialed an unknown number.
"Ayanokoji-sensei..."
"...That's right, the plan is proceeding. I'll do my best to ensure he's expelled."
"...Also, I'd like to report something about another student."