Society is always governed by results. They come from academics, from work—sometimes from both. Achieving the desired outcome brings people happiness. Failing to do so, on the other hand, only leads to disappointment, forcing a person to reflect on their circumstances… and occasionally, even on their life choices.
During entrance exam week for the various high schools, on the day of the test itself, I found myself inside a classroom before my exam began. Several students around me looked tense, as if they were trying to convince themselves they'd score high enough to get in.
That's a completely normal reaction for kids their age. I know because, in my previous life, I was one of them—except back then, it was for a university entrance exam.
Remembering past experiences does have its advantages.
Because of that, when the exam started, I stayed calm and focused on answering as many questions as possible. Since the test was timed, obsessing over a single problem—especially a math one—was pointless.
I don't know what score I'll end up with, but I think I'll pass. I'm not pessimistic. Considering what I reviewed beforehand and what I learned in middle school, it should be enough to secure a spot. Or at least, that's what I believe.
If your only goal is to get in, then reviewing a bit and learning the basics in school is usually enough. Aiming for the top ranks, however, is a completely different story.
In my opinion, the top ten scorers on entrance exams are genuine geniuses.
Answering all 200 questions—forty per subject—was utterly exhausting. Even with my good grades and high average, there were problems I abandoned the moment I saw them.
Still, there had to be students who solved even the most difficult questions. Those same students probably walked away with near-perfect scores.
Realistically speaking, raw talent alone isn't enough to claim first place. It also takes dedication and relentless effort.
As for me, I don't aspire to something that grand. If I had to choose between studying nonstop just to feel more competitive, or taking the exam calmly at my own pace, the answer is obvious.
You can't expect good results without putting in the effort. That's something I understand all too well.
For now, all that's left is to wait for the results to be published. On top of that, my graduation is only a few days away.
Too many things to deal with before officially becoming a high school student…
I let out a quiet sigh as my attention returned to the novel in my hands.
Even so, before I could finish the first paragraph, the book suddenly vanished.
"Are you seriously reading right now?"
"I don't really have anything else to do," I replied to Yumiko.
Standing in front of me was a beautiful girl with blonde hair, jade-green eyes, fair skin, and a figure that would stir the hearts of most boys our age. In short, she was Miura Yumiko—my self-proclaimed friend.
I stopped being particularly conscious of that fact a long time ago.
"Nothing to do? Have you even looked around you? Idiot."
It was a common insult here in Japan, and one that didn't bother me in the slightest. The word "idiot"—or rather, baka—shows up constantly in the novels I read.
Hearing it almost makes me laugh. Depending on the tone, you can usually tell whether it's meant as an actual insult or just playful banter.
After briefly drifting off while pondering the definition—and cultural legacy—of the word baka, I finally looked around the classroom. That's when I realized Yumiko and I were the only ones left.
"Are classes already over?"
Yumiko pressed a hand to her forehead.
"Do you even know what day it is today?"
"Tuesday."
"Are you an idiot?"
"Technically speaking, people who call others idiots are the real idiots," I said proudly.
By that logic, Yumiko was the only idiot here.
She stared at me for a moment, raised an eyebrow, and then sighed.
"Exam results come out today. We were even given permission to visit the high schools and check them."
"Oh! I see. That makes sense."
There are only a few days left before we graduate, so for seniors, classes are basically reduced to free study time—put simply, doing nothing.
"Your attitude is exasperating."
"Thanks for the compliment."
"Enough joking around. Let's go already."
"Alright, alright, but give me back my novel first."
I reached out to take it, but she pulled her arm away just in time.
"I honestly don't get why you read this stuff. There's even a half-naked girl on the cover." Yumiko scrutinized the novel, staring at the illustration with visible disgust.
"It helps me relax."
Maybe I shouldn't have said that. Now she's looking at me like I just confessed to a crime.
"You're not seriously saying you read these for the obscene content, are you?"
"It's called fanservice. The cover's just there to grab attention."
She flipped through the pages, stopping occasionally at the illustrations.
"I see. So that's what you're into, huh."
Yumiko handed the novel back to me, deliberately leaving it open on an illustration of the MC showing off his lean, well-trained body.
"Girls who read it deserve a little fanservice too."
That's actually true. Novels that cater to both male and female audiences are rare—most illustrations focus exclusively on girls in skimpy outfits: bikinis, absurdly thin armor, or clothing that barely qualifies as such.
"Whatever, let's just go already!"
She turned around and started walking without waiting for me.
"Alright, alright."
I slipped the novel back into my bag and followed after her.
Our destination was obvious: Sobu High.
…
"Nervous about our bet?"
"Did I ever promise something like that?" I raised an eyebrow, keeping my eyes on the road ahead.
I'm walking alongside Yumiko. We still have a few minutes before reaching Sobu High, and—true to form—she absolutely hates silence.
"On exam day, when we were walking home, we bet that whoever ranked higher would get to give the other an order!" she declared confidently.
Hmm…
That day, after finishing the exam, I met up with Yumiko outside Sobu High. From there, we walked to her house like we usually do.
If memory serves, while we were comparing answers and talking about how the test went, she suddenly flashed a sly smile and suggested a bet over who would place higher.
At first, I turned it down. I couldn't exactly guarantee I'd score better. But Yumiko, knowing me far too well, started poking at my pride.
"You're so scared of losing to me—how cute~"
"Come on, don't be a coward, Rai-kun!"
"Then I guess that means I'm better than you, hahaha."
Those were just some of the things she threw at me to lure me in.
And in the end, I accepted.
I don't think Yumiko will beat my score. It's not that I'm underestimating her—well, she is an idiot—so that's also why I agreed.
And now, we're only a few minutes away from finding out who scored higher.
"I seem to remember," I said, nodding.
"Don't play dumb!" She lightly jabbed my arm with her elbow.
"In a few days you'll be a high school student. You're not an elementary school kid anymore," I scolded her.
"Huh?!" She shot me an indignant look. "You're the last person who should be saying that."
"Between the two of us, I'm the more mature one," I puffed out my chest proudly.
Mentally, I'm over thirty if you add up both of my lives.
Yumiko burst out laughing, as if I'd just delivered the punchline of a joke.
"Come on, Raiden, don't joke around," she said, a mocking smile tugging at her lips.
"I don't recall saying anything funny."
"Of course you did. Between the two of us, it's obvious I'm the more mature one," Yumiko shot back, puffing out her chest just like I had.
…Well, I appreciate the view.
Once my eyes returned to the road, the entrance to Sobu High came into sight.
"Good girl. You're very mature," I said calmly, reaching out to pat her head.
She immediately brushed my hand away.
"Don't treat me like a child!" Yumiko glared at me sharply.
"Of course I'm not. Want to grab some taiyaki after this?"
"Yes! I'd like something sweet." She smiled brightly, but a few seconds later, her expression shifted. "You did that on purpose!"
"We're almost there," I said, quickening my pace to stay ahead of her inevitable tantrum.
...
Inside Sobu High, I walked alongside Yumiko toward the bulletin boards near the entrance.
A small crowd had already gathered there, all of us here for the same reason.
Stopping in front of the boards, I started scanning the lists, searching for my last name. Yumiko—and several other students—were doing the same, eyes darting back and forth with barely contained anticipation.
For reference, each classroom usually holds up to forty students, and the sections—according to what I asked—are divided from A to J. That gives a total of four hundred available spots.
As for the results board, it's simple: if there's a number next to your last name indicating your rank, you passed. If your name isn't there—no matter how many times you check—you failed.
After a bit of searching, I found it.
Tsurumi Raiden: 11
Not bad.
Though, ideally, I would've preferred a nice, middle-of-the-pack ranking. That way I could claim everything went exactly according to plan—like solving only half the exam and still getting in without drawing attention.
Of course, saying that is much easier than doing it. Deliberately answering just enough questions to land in the middle is absurdly difficult.
Even so, despite answering most of the exam, it still wasn't enough to break into the top ten.
As I said earlier, getting into the top ten is already extremely hard—so does ranking eleventh put me at the very top of the average crowd?
When I think of it that way, it doesn't sound so bad.
By the way, the actual exam scores aren't displayed, so I'll never know how wide the gap is between rank eleven and rank ten—let alone between eleven and first place.
I could've missed tenth by a single point… or by a landslide.
That's something I'll never know—and honestly, I'd rather keep it that way.
The entrance exam itself is the easiest part, since it only covers material taught throughout middle school. High school exams, on the other hand, are on a completely different level.
From here on out, classes only get harder—and don't even get me started on math. I barely scraped by in middle school, and now that the difficulty has skyrocketed… yeah, it's going to be hell.
Who the hell thought it was a good idea to add letters to numbers? I sighed inwardly.
I suck at math in this world and the previous one—though I'm slightly better this time around.
Setting my personal grudge against mathematics aside, I remembered the bet I'd made with Yumiko.
"What should I ask her for?" I muttered under my breath.
Do I sound arrogant? Maybe. But realistically, I seriously doubt she ranked above me, so I can afford to boast just a little.
Letting my gaze wander over the remaining students, I eventually spotted Yumiko standing a short distance away.
"So, how did you do?" I asked cheerfully as I approached her.
Her expression hovered somewhere between irritation and exhaustion.
I highly doubt Yumiko failed, so she probably landed somewhere around the 300–400 range. I can't really blame her—nearby, a few students looked utterly crushed. My guess is they couldn't find their names at all.
"And you, Raiden—what rank did you get?" she asked.
"Number eleven," I replied, trying not to sound arrogant… though I probably failed at that.
"I see…"
I probably shouldn't rub it in, but it's Yumiko—she'll bounce back easily.
"The thing is, you still got in. And about our bet, I was thinking that maybe—"
Before I could finish saying what I wanted to ask for, she burst out laughing.
Did she lose her mind after losing? I doubt she's that bad of a loser.
Just as I was about to ask whether I should take her to a psychiatrist, she pointed at the board. I followed her finger with my eyes and saw her surname—and her ranking.
Miura Yumiko: 10
"Huh…?"
I rubbed my eyes, convinced I'd misread it. When I looked again, nothing changed.
Pinching myself crossed my mind, so I did—and the sharp pain made it clear I wasn't dreaming.
Maybe this is a simulation?
"You know, bribing a public institution is a serious crime…"
She stepped on my foot before I could finish.
"What are you implying?!"
"I'm just saying it's not exactly what one would expect…"
"What's that supposed to mean?!"
"Could you stop stepping on my foot…? It's starting to hurt."
Instead of moving it, she pressed down even harder, forcing a pained sigh out of me.
"I'll stop once you say what you're really thinking!"
"And then you complain that I'm too honest…"
Women—who can understand them?
"I'm waiting!"
"I was just thinking it's impossible for you to have beaten me."
"And why is that?!"
The look in her eyes spelled danger, so I needed to be very careful with my answer.
"Because you're an idiot…"
I didn't even finish the sentence before Yumiko lifted her foot and kicked me square in the ankle.
I clenched my teeth at the sudden pain and bent over, clutching my poor ankle, now a victim of a short-tempered girl.
She ignored my groans, looking at me as if to say I'd totally deserved it.
"You know," she said, "the ones who call others idiots are the real idiots."
"Don't use my own words against me!" I protested, still rubbing my ankle.
Yumiko looked away, clearly annoyed.
After a few seconds, once the pain eased a little, I managed to stand up again.
"Have you learned your lesson yet?"
"And what lesson would that be?"
"Don't underestimate me." She pointed at me as she spoke, her tone dripping with superiority.
"Fine, I get it. Then just say it already—what are you going to order me to do…?"
I lost fair and square, and as a proper loser who gave his word, I have to do whatever she asks. I just hope it's not something like going to the mall with her again. I'm still traumatized from that day.
"Hmm. I'll keep it for now. When I think it's the right moment, I'll tell you."
"Is this some new kind of intimidation?"
"That's exactly why I'd rather save it for a situation where you refuse to do something," she muttered quietly.
"So basically, you're going to psychologically torture me by making me wonder when you'll use this against me?"
"You could say that!"
Mental note: never underestimate this girl again—or next time, it'll be even worse for me.
"Will you show any mercy?"
"That's not going to happen," she said with an innocent smile.
I have no choice but to accept the fate I brought upon myself. Next time, I shouldn't make a bet unless I'm at least 99.9% sure of winning. Nothing is ever 100%; there are always setbacks.
"If there's nothing else to do, let's head back to school. I want to keep reading my novel," I said, feeling somewhat dejected.
Filling my head with these thoughts won't do me any good. Besides, I doubt she'll use it anytime soon—she might even forget about it, which would honestly be ideal for me.
"Hey, since we're already here, why don't we go in and check out our future school?" she said, excitement clear in her voice.
"We already saw it on the day we came to take the entrance exam."
"That day the teachers didn't let us access the other areas of the school—only our assigned classrooms," Yumiko pouted as she recalled it.
She wasn't wrong. On exam day, once we left the classrooms, Yumiko had suggested we walk around Sobu High's grounds, but the teachers stopped us almost immediately.
"So you want to sneak onto the campus, look around, and then get in trouble for being inside without permission? I'm not really into that idea."
"Come on, don't be like that. It'll be fun, and if we get caught, we'll figure something out."
"That answer doesn't convince me at all."
We'd probably just get scolded for entering without permission, but even so, I'd rather avoid unnecessary trouble.
In Japan, you need permission to enter places like this unless there's a school event or an official tour—and those only happen on specific days. You can't just walk in whenever you feel like it.
"Don't be such a coward."
Yumiko grabbed my hand and tried to drag me along, but I didn't budge an inch.
"You're wasting your time," I said calmly as I watched her fail to move me even a little.
"Why are you so stubborn?"
"I know how to plant myself so I won't be moved."
Funny how the things you learn can be useful when you least expect them.
"Aren't you curious?" She still didn't give up and kept pulling at my arm.
"Just a little."
Like I said, I am somewhat curious about seeing Sobu High's facilities. I know it'll probably be very similar to other schools, but a small part of me still wants to see it with my own eyes.
"The students are in class, so the teachers are busy too. There won't be any problem—and if there is, I'll take responsibility. What do you say?"
…Put that way, it doesn't sound that bad.
"I feel like those words will be blown away by the wind when the time comes…" I sighed inwardly. "Fine. Let's go."
"Yay!"
Worst-case scenario, we get scolded. After all, we're just fifteen-year-old students excited to see the facilities of our future school—a perfectly reasonable excuse, if you ask me.
Once we reached an agreement, we stepped onto Sobu High's grounds together.
The entrance was no different from any other school's—shoe lockers lined the walls, along with spaces for umbrellas in case of rain.
Going further inside, we walked through the hallways, passing various classrooms where lessons were already in session. Luckily, Sobu High's classrooms don't have windows facing the corridors, so we managed to stay unnoticed.
"Have you had enough yet?" I whispered.
At least from the inside, Sobu High isn't all that different from our current school.
"Not yet! I want to see most of the place!"
Yumiko continued leading the way, completely set on exploring every corner of the school.
…This girl really is a headache.