Early in the morning, all the students of Class-E had arrived in the class, their expressions unusually serious. Not even a hint of smile could be seen on anyone's face. Yesterday, Liam had sent the information he bought to the group, allowing everyone to read personally. After realizing the truth, almost everyone was disturbed.
Kaiser sat at his seat, his lazy eyes scanning their expressions. Among everyone else, only Ariel and Sebastian seemed unbothered. The blonde guy was examining his own looks in a small mirror, while the silver-haired guy remained as expressionless as always.
'Well, they're both strange anyway…'
Finally, when the last student entered with a dark expression, Liam climbed onto the podium. His face was hardened too, lacking its usual smile.
"Morning, guys. I believe everyone has read through the file I sent on the group."
No one answered him, though, a few nodded subtly. Sighing, he continued.
"Although I know we've read it, let me explain again. After reading through everything again, I noted that there are six major points."
"Firstly, we have Class Rank Points. In our three years of stay in this school, this is undoubtedly the most important thing. Class Rank Points are used for grading the Class Rankings and determining which class stays at the top. Take for instance, our class has 800 CRP, and Class-D has 700 CRP. Automatically, our class becomes Class-D while the previous Class-D becomes the new Class-E."
Bitter smiles emerged on their faces, as this information stung a bit. Eric, scratching his hair, turned to Liam.
"Ehh… does that mean we're in the last place, right now? We just resumed, right?"
Liam nodded with a bitter smile. "Indeed, we're in the last place, right now. Though, it can surely change in the future."
Jose seemed to have more questions, but waited for Liam to continue.
"Also, our Class Rank Points are used to pay us our monthly credits. For example, we'll be getting 80,000 credits every month, if we have 800 CRP."
Alisa, the brown-haired girl with sizable busy, furrowed her brows. "That means a single Class Rank Point is equivalent to a hundred credits?"
Liam nodded after a quick calculation, realizing she was right.
"Secondly, as for how the CRP is calculated for each class, it remains known only to the school. However, it is stated that our conduct within the class highly influences this. Just like we've guessed, paying attention during class, and not skipping class is important."
As he said this, Logan scoffed slightly, a displeased expression on his face. Although he attended all classes recently, he wasn't really find of attending classes. Hearing that his former behavior could affect the class, he felt uncomfortable, shouldering the unconcealed gazes of his classmates.
Liam, still immersed in solemnity, didn't notice this, and continued.
"Thirdly, our academic performance. According to the school rules, scoring below fifty marks in Mathematics, Combat Training, and History, would result in immediate expulsion."
The air thickened slightly, and many expressions turned grave. Although no exams had been taken yet, almost everyone knew that most people in their class were academically poor. Notable examples were Logan, Eric, and Jose who frequently asked simple questions in class, or failed to understand basic equations.
Feeling the stares if their classmates, the three troublesome boys shrunk, not daring to look back.
Liam sighed, "This brings us to another major point… how to prevent expulsion. Paying 25 million credits ensure that a person isn't expelled. However, to gather that amount… I don't think it's possible."
Everyone agreed with him. Even if they got 100,000 credits per month, only after 250 months would the money be complete. By then, they would have long graduated.
Liam didn't bother dwelling on that. "More importantly, is another matter related to our Class Rank Points."
"Special Evaluations. These are impromptu examinations that can vary greatly in content. In fact, it is said that the school never uses the same Special Evaluation twice. Therefore, it is entirely unpredictable."
His fists clenched, and his eyes shone with a determined light. Seeing his obvious excitement, his classmates stirred.
"Although we're Class-E right now, as long as we beat the other classes in the Special Evaluations, we'll be able to earn more CRP and advance!"
As soon as he said this, bright, hopeful smiles appeared on their faces. His words were indeed true as earning more CRP meant their class could rise in the Class Rankings.
Still in his seat, Kaiser regarded their excitement with indifference.
'Haa…? They think they can easily win the Evaluations? Pipe dreams…'
He unconsciously smiled, though, it was filled with scorn and disdain.
Suddenly, Ariel raised his hand, prompting Liam to look towards him.
"Yes, Ariel? You have a question?"
The silver-haired boy nodded, then spoke flatly. "I want to understand why we are put in Class-E. Is it something done randomly, or done after careful selection? After all, all classes received a thousand Class Rank Points at the beginning."
The class's excitement cooled, and they turned to Liam. Indeed, now that they thought about it, it seemed unfair. Unlike the other classes, they had been placed in Class-E, the lowest class. How could they not feel indignant?
Liam sighed, then rubbed his eyes. This was an information he deeply wanted to avoid sharing, as it could impact the morale of the class. However, now that he had been asked, he had no choice but to answer.
"It isn't random." He started, "According to what I learnt, we were classified using our personal flaws."
His words instantly sent a ripple through the class. Several eyes turned confused, while a few sharpened.
"Flaws?" Hazel quietly muttered, her expression darkening. She wasn't liking the sound of this information at all.
Smiling helplessly, Liam continued. "Essentially, the school believes that those with the least flaws are placed in Class-A, while those with the most flaws are placed in Class-E."
Silence. Then, the class erupted like a timed bomb.
"Wait, most flawed?!"
"Do they mean that we're the worst?"
"How can that be possible? Surely they must be joking!"
"Yeah, right? How do they even know who's better than who?"
"Hah! I hate this school! Calling us piece of shit? Nonsense!"
Liam closed his eyes, the loud voices of argument echoing in his ears. It seemed the inevitable fury of the indignant students had been ignited.