Even though Hoshinomiya was smiling, the two male teachers beside her could tell that she seemed to suddenly get a little worked up.
Hoshinomiya, Chabashira, and the others were all students from the same year, but they had been in different classes. Hoshinomiya had even been Chabashira's close friend back then.
Now, even though she was smiling, there was a strong sense of disapproval coming from her.
It was like she really didn't want Chabashira to climb her way up.
"If my class could really rise through the ranks, we wouldn't be sitting at zero points right now," Chabashira said, looking completely unfazed.
She started walking straight ahead as she spoke.
Hoshinomiya didn't follow right away.
She stayed where she was, muttering to herself.
"Hey, Chabashira… are you still stuck on the past? Are you trying to use Class D now to make up for what you couldn't do back then?"
"But don't you get it? It's pointless. Because of you, the rest of us never had a chance to graduate from Class A."
"So there's no way I'll let you find peace on your own."
"No matter how high you try to climb, I'll always be there to pull you down. Always."
Even while saying something that sounded so scary, Hoshinomiya quickly caught up with Chabashira and put on a cute smile.
"Come on, Chabashira, don't walk so fast~"
"Since your class lost today, how about we grab some drinks tonight? If you haven't spent all your points, it's my treat."
"..."
This side of Hoshinomiya was honestly kind of scary.
Watching from a distance, Sakagami-sensei instinctively looked away.
He was starting to understand why someone like Hoshinomiya — with high emotional intelligence and good looks — had never really settled down with anyone. This was probably the reason. She could be really intense.
"What a pain," Majima-sensei sighed as he looked at the two women walking away.
It was clear now — Chabashira wanted to climb up, and Hoshinomiya had her eyes on her.
The 100,000-point penalty Hoshinomiya got was probably just an excuse to check whether Chabashira had broken any rules.
"Anyway, congrats, Sakagami," Majima-sensei turned to Sakagami Kazuma. "Your class made it to the top."
"We were in the same class back then, and I admit you're stronger, Majima. But when it comes to class performance, ours might actually beat yours," Sakagami said, adjusting his glasses.
"So, why did you lose 500,000 points?" Majima suddenly asked.
"..." Sakagami was quiet for a moment. "It's fine to tell you. Actually, Ryuen asked me about the class evaluation scores. Technically, I wasn't supposed to say anything… but I told him anyway. That's probably why I lost 500,000 points."
So that was where Sakagami crossed the line.
He was playing favorites with his students — way too much.
"Some of the things you're doing will only hurt your students in the long run," Majima said seriously.
But Sakagami just adjusted his glasses again.
"Sometimes, adults play dirty too. So instead of letting my students get fooled by shady people later in life, I'd rather teach them how to be the ones pulling the strings."
"And this school, where strength matters most, is the perfect place for that, isn't it?" Sakagami said, his eyes full of determination.
Back when they were students, Sakagami and Majima had been in the same class — Majima had been the class leader, while Sakagami was just someone barely hanging on in Class A. Some of his ideas weren't accepted by others in the class, but he believed his way of thinking would be more useful in the real world.
So, what was wrong with letting his students see how dark the world really was a little earlier?
Better to get tricked now than later, right?
...
Homeroom ended quickly.
Then came free activity time for the students.
For Class C—or rather, Class B now—this was a big moment: it was time to change their class sign.
"A bit to the left, more left... yeah, that's it!"
"I can't believe we're Class B now."
"Feels like a comeback story."
Ryuen's class was buzzing with excitement. Most students were caught up in the hype of their class ranking going up. After all, who doesn't like moving up?
So once they confirmed that their student IDs had been updated, someone started messing with the class sign.
But soon after…
"Hey, who's that girl?"
"She's super cute. Is she a first-year like us?"
"No idea what class she's in."
"She's walking this way."
The students' focus quickly shifted—to the girl.
They noticed a very cute girl with a cane walking down the hallway.
She soon arrived at the classroom door.
"Can you help me pass on a message?" she asked.
"Y-yeah, of course!" The student she asked looked flattered and surprised.
"This isn't really your place to be, is it, Sakayanagi?"
But just then, a guy with red, middle-parted hair blocked her path.
"You're right, I don't belong here," she replied politely. "That's why I need your help calling someone out."
"Ryuen-kun." She said his name without hesitation.
"Tch."
Ryuen let out a scoff, then shouted into the classroom:
"Miyuki Shirogane, Sakayanagi from Class A is looking for you!"