March 5th.
The morning horoom, with the "Class Poll"—that irrational ritual of sacrifice—looming tomorrow.
The mont our horoom teacher, Hoshinomiya-sensei, stood behind the podium, she clapped her hands together with a loud smack.
"Good morning, everyone! I have so seriously big news—or rather, a super important announcent for you all first thing this morning... Believe it or not! Limited strictly to this special exam, the cost of the right to 'cancel an expulsion' using private points has been cut in half to ten million points~!"
At Hoshinomiya-sensei's cheerful voice, the classroom fell dead silent for a fraction of a second, imdiately followed by an explosion of massive cheers.
"Are you serious?! If it's ten million, our class savings can handle that with room to spare!"
"Thank goodness... This ans we can preserve a huge chunk of our class savings!"
While my classmates held hands and flashed relieved smiles at one another, I sat alone, quietly folding my arms and closing my eyes.
(…It was completely worth sacrificing my dignity and sha to recite the full incantation of Kurohitsugi. …Though just rembering it makes feel like my face is going to burst into flas!! I am absolutely, positively never doing that again!!)
While writhing in agony internally, I maintained my composure as an absolute ruler on the surface, keeping a serene smile on my face.
Casting my gaze forward, I noticed Ichinose, sitting in a seat close to the podium, also wearing a relieved smile now that the safety of our class was guaranteed. However, her gaze quickly dropped as she fell into deep thought, seemingly contemplating sothing.
During the brief intermission after horoom ended and before the first period began, Ichinose and Kanzaki walked over to the desks where Hiyori and I sat.
"Aizen-kun, Hiyori-chan. Do you have a mont?"
"Yeah, I don't mind."
While Ichinose smiled happily, she also carried a terribly apologetic, slightly strained expression.
"Now that the condition to avoid expulsion has been lowered to ten million points, our class savings have a lot of breathing room. So... um, this is a really selfish request, but..."
After hesitating and letting her words trail off, Ichinose looked at Hiyori and with newfound determination.
"To make sure the students in Class C and Class D don't get expelled... I was wondering what you thought about lending them our surplus points?"
(…As expected, leave it to Ichinose to think exactly that.)
I nodded deeply to myself. Given her bottomless kindness, there was no way she would be satisfied just because we were safe. Being unable to overlook students from other classes in distress was precisely the virtue that defined the human being known as Ichinose Honami.
(But… this involves the precious savings of everyone in the class. No matter how much leeway we have now, we can't just decide sothing like this among the four of us.)
As I was turning the gears in my head, Kanzaki, standing right next to her, imdiately voiced his objection with a stern expression.
"Ichinose. Your kindness is admirable. Personally, I want to respect that philosophy as well. But we are currently in the middle of an inter-class conflict, you know? What rit is there in saving other classes? Furthermore... even if we lend points to those bottom two classes, where is the guarantee that they'll actually pay us back?"
Kanzaki's words were an unassailable statent of absolute logic.
"That's..."
As Ichinose found herself at a loss for words, Hiyori quietly spoke up.
"I understand Honami-chan's feelings very well. However... since these are the class savings, I believe we should consult everyone in the class and only move forward once every single person agrees. Furthermore, if we do lend them, it must be an absolute condition that 'every mber of the receiving class agrees and promises to repay it.'"
"I guess it really is too selfish of ... I'm sorry."
Ichinose slumped her shoulders in disappointnt.
"Fufu. That kindness of yours is very wonderful, Honami-chan."
Hiyori smiled gently, weaving words to support the dejected Ichinose.
"However, an organization cannot run on goodwill alone. If we don't use the points in a way that satisfies every classmate, it will cause issues for our class managent moving forward. Personally... I think the proposal itself is perfectly fine, provided we can present so form of 'clear benefit to Class A.'"
"…You're right. Ichinose, I'm sorry for speaking so harshly earlier."
Kanzaki's expression softened slightly as he faced Ichinose again.
"You are the leader of our class. If this is what you want, we will respect your will as much as possible. But just as Shiina said, we need the bare minimum conditions to satisfy the class."
"Hiyori-chan... Kanzaki-kun... thank you."
With tears welling in her eyes, Ichinose snapped her head up.
"What do you think, Sosuke-kun?"
Hiyori turned her gaze toward .
(…To prevent an irrational expulsion, I'm personally in favor of lending points to the other classes.)
(I've already kept Tsukishiro in check, so the probability of another exam that results in mass expulsions in the near future is low. However, since we are parting with half of our twenty-million-point safety net here, we can't let this end as a re charity project.)
(That's exactly why, as Kanzaki and Hiyori said, presenting a clear 'return' that satisfies the entire class is indispensable.)
Summarizing my thoughts, I smiled with imnse composure and spun a highly stylized phrase.
"—The sun does not bestow its light upon the earth to reap rewards. It does so rely because it is an absolute, radiant existence. However... as a matter of etiquette for those who receive the light, an appropriate offering is required."
"'Personally, I think it's fine to lend them the points, but we need conditions and a return to satisfy everyone,' is what he ans!"
As Hiyori delivered her perfect translation, Ichinose nodded happily.
Afterward, Ichinose utilized the brief window before class to explain the proposal to the entire class.
"Everyone, please listen. We have plenty of leeway now, but ten million points might still be tough for Class C and Class D. That's why... if they want it, I'd like to lend them our points. Of course, it won't be unconditional; we'll make sure it's structured in a way that benefits our class too...!"
In response to Ichinose's earnest appeal, the reaction from our classmates was generally positive.
"If that's what Ichinose wants, we won't oppose it."
"Yeah. But if we just give them a free loan unconditionally... it'd be worrying if they don't pay it back, since it would just an a net loss for our class savings."
"In that case, how about we have the students of the other class gather every single point they currently hold, and we only lend them the 'deficit' that they're short of? If they pay us back with interest, it won't be a loss for us either."
"Plus, to ensure that paynts aren't delayed or defaulted on, we should definitely include a clause in the contract where the school automatically deducts the points from them every month."
As realistic opinions to protect the class's assets poured in, Ichinose nodded firmly with a serious expression.
"…Yes, I agree that a mandatory deduction contract is necessary. Since we're lending everyone's important points, we have to be strict about that. But let's avoid setting any penalties harsher than that or charging exorbitant interest."
"It might be selfish of ... but if we tighten the noose too much around their necks with overly harsh conditions when we're supposed to be lending points to save them, it defeats the whole purpose..."
At Ichinose's gentle yet firm words, the classmates flashed understanding smiles, saying things like, "That makes sense," and "That's so like Ichinose."
Thus, constructive opinions were voiced one after another by the classmates, and the lending conditions were finally finalized:
Class C and Class D must collect points from every single student in their class, and Class A will only lend the remaining deficit.
The loaned points must be repaid with a 10% interest rate piled on top (e.g., lending 5 million ans a repaynt of 5.5 million).
A contract will be signed to mandate automatic point deductions through the school in the event that repaynt stalls.
It was a proposal that perfectly balanced Ichinose's kindness with Class A's rock-solid risk managent.
Since our Class A had a discussion scheduled after school today to finalize our "vote control" for tomorrow's ballot, it was decided that the negotiations would take place during lunch break.
To divide and conquer, Ichinose and Kanzaki headed to negotiate with Class C, while Hiyori and I headed to Class D.
Lunch break.
Ichinose and Kanzaki stepped into the Class C classroom.
"…What's this? What do the Class A folks want?"
The Class C students clearly showed signs of wariness toward the sudden visitors.
"Everyone, sorry to interrupt. Please listen to for just a mont."
Standing before the podium, Ichinose expressed her concern for Class C's current situation, operating on the premise that salvation was now possible with ten million points due to this morning's announcent.
"If you gather all your points and still can't reach ten million... we in Class A can lend you the deficit with a small amount of interest. That way, Class C might be able to get through this without any expulsions. So—"
"Ah—yeah, yeah. Stop right there."
Interrupting Ichinose was Manabe Shiho, who was hanging out with a group of girls at the back of the classroom.
"What's this? Did the honor students of Class A go out of their way to show rcy to a bottom class? Sorry, but we didn't ask for your ddling~"
Scoffing loudly, Manabe waved her hand dismissively as if mocking Ichinose.
"The person who's 'getting expelled' from our class has already been decided. There's no way we're giving up our precious points to save him."
"Yeah, exactly. Ten million points for a guy like that? Ridiculous."
Manabe's clique of girls chid in one after another. For them, the expulsion of their forr tyrant, Ryuuen, was a done deal—and a welco one at that.
"A-Are you really okay with that...? A classmate of yours is going to get expelled, you know?!"
Ichinose questioned them, visibly flustered.
"Classmate? Don't make laugh. We'll be glad to be rid of a guy like him! Anyway, we aren't interested in playing along with your hypocrisy. Mind your own business."
At Manabe's cold words, Ishizaki, who had been quietly keeping his head down in the corner of the classroom, stood up as if he had reached his absolute limit.
"You piece of...! Manabe!!"
"W-What?! You got a problem with that?!"
As Ishizaki glared at her with murderous intent, Manabe raised her voice right back, refusing to back down.
(…You piece of garbage. Enjoy laughing while you still can. We've already made a deal with Class B, and the possibility of Ryuuen-san getting expelled has vanished entirely…! Tomorrow, you're the one whose face is gonna distort in despair when you get expelled!!)
Though Ishizaki boiled with internal rage, he couldn't expose the plan here, so he clamped his teeth together hard and sat back down in his seat.
"…I understand. If you change your minds, please let know by the end of school today. I'll be waiting."
Wearing a deeply sorrowful expression, Ichinose left the classroom.
Once they were out in the hallway, Kanzaki quietly spoke to her.
"Don't let it get to you. You did nothing wrong. Different classes have different policies and circumstances. There's nothing more we can do."
"…Yeah. It's sad, but I guess it can't be helped..."
Ichinose could only nod weakly, her heart aching over the current fragnted state of Class C.
anwhile, around the sa ti.
Hiyori and I were heading toward the Class D classroom.
Since it was lunch break, many students were rising from their seats to head to the cafeteria or the convenience store. If I struck up a conversation casually here, they probably wouldn't take seriously.
Standing at the entrance of the classroom, I let a thoroughly arrogant and commanding voice echo inside.
"—Halt your steps. I shall personally bestow my words upon you. …Now, take your seats."
"Eek…?!"
"T-The Student Council Vice President…?!"
"Kh…! This imnse pressure that directly burns the skin… As expected of our 'Absolute Ruler,' Aizen-sama…! I am unworthy, yet I shall carve your profound words into my very soul…!"
Suddenly, while gripping his right arm as if it were throbbing with dark power, Ike shouted out that excruciatingly cringeworthy line with a completely straight face.
(IKEEEEE?! Horikita ntioned it before, but is it seriously this bad?! No way, no matter how stylized I am, I'm not this cringey, right?! This is a terminal case of eighth-grader syndro!!)
Desperately suppressing a massive urge to scream a ta-comntary critique and feeling my face burst into flas from pure secondhand embarrassnt, I maintained a cold, detached expression on the surface and walked toward the teacher's podium.
Standing before the class, I delivered the exact sa terms Ichinose had proposed—collecting points from everyone, lending the deficit with a 10% interest rate, and signing a contract for mandatory school deductions if repaynts stalled—conveying it in an overwhelmingly stylized and arrogant manner.
"'We ca here out of the goodwill of our Class A leader, Ichinose-san. If you gather every single point from your class and still fall short of ten million, we will lend you the deficit with a ten percent interest rate. However, in the unlikely event that repaynt is delayed, we will require you to sign a contract allowing mandatory deductions through the school,' is what he ans!"
The mont Hiyori displayed her perfect translation, the classroom buzzed with commotion.
The first to react was Hirata, the diator of the class.
"I-Is that true?! In that case, please lend it to us! I swear that we, Class D, will definitely pay it back, including the interest...!"
The exact mont Hirata's face lit up as if he had found a ray of hope.
"Huh?! Don't screw with !!"
A vulgar, angry shout rang out, completely shattering the atmosphere of the classroom.
Standing up was Yamauchi Haruki.
"Why the hell do we have to pool all our points together?! If you're gonna lend them to us, you guys should just pay the full ten million!! Class A has plenty of leftover points anyway!"
Snap.
At Yamauchi's incredibly selfish, beggar-like statent, the air in the classroom completely froze over.
(......Huh?)
Internally, I bypassed being dumbfounded and went straight to speechlessness.
(T-This guy... is he seriously saying that? Why the hell should we bear the full financial burden to save your classmate? In the first place, if you guys, the ones being saved, won't even show the sincerity of spending your own cash, do you honestly think our classmates would ever agree to this...? On top of that, isn't he one of the guys called the 'Three Idiots' of Class D? Given your daily behavior, shouldn't you be the pri candidate for expulsion anyway...?)
As I felt like facepalming at the sheer stupidity of it all, Horikita Suzune, sitting in the very back row, barked out a sharp reprimand.
"Silence! Yamauchi-kun! Do you even comprehend how shaless of a thing you are saying?!"
"W-What is it, Horikita! I'm not saying anything wrong!"
"You are wrong. Fundantally so."
Cutting Yamauchi down coldly, Horikita turned a sharp glare toward .
"…Aizen-kun. What is your objective? Going out of your way to present such favorable terms while maintaining an attitude that looks down on us... Don't tell you have so ulterior motive behind this?"
"Hmph. A warped perspective. But rest assured. No personal motives of mine intersect with this board. —Did I not tell you just now? This is strictly the 'rcy' of the radiant sun... Class A's leader, Ichinose Honami."
"'There is no ulterior motive. This is purely a proposal born from the kindness of our Class A leader, Honami-chan,' is what he ans!"
Hiyori calmly delivered her perfect translation.
"…So it's Ichinose-san's goodwill. I apologize for my warped perspective."
Horikita let down her guard slightly and let out a small breath.
"…It's a fact that this is a saving grace for our class. Just as Hirata-kun said, we—"
"Wait a minute!"
Just as Horikita was about to accept the negotiation, Shinohara, Hondou, and several others raised their voices in protest.
"Even if you're lending us the deficit, I hate the idea of our personal private points completely disappearing!"
"Yeah! I have a ga I want to buy this month, you know!"
"Foolish mortals!!"
Suddenly, Ike's theatrical voice bood through the classroom once more.
"Aizen-sama has bestowed his rciful words upon us for our sake...! To think you cannot comprehend his profound, true intention... You ungrateful lots are truly beyond saving!!"
"Kanji! Shut up! You're just making things complicated!"
Sudou barked back, imdiately delivering a fierce retort while faceplanting into his hands.
"Y-Yeah, everyone calm down... I'd still be so sad if soone ended up getting expelled... That's why I think it's better if we endure a little and accept Ichinose-san and the others' proposal."
Kushida also put on an anxious expression, clasping her hands in front of her chest as she tried to soothe the class.
"Huhahaha! This is quite the comical farce once again."
In the corner of the increasingly chaotic classroom, Koenji alone went his own way, elegantly crossing his legs and turning an amused gaze toward entirely by himself.
Within the classroom, a fierce argunt erupted, splitting the class right down the middle into the "approval faction" led by Hirata, Kushida, and Horikita, and the "protest faction" led by Yamauchi and Shinohara.
(...Wow... Are you serious? Do you guys even understand the situation you're in?)
Faced with the disastrous spectacle of Class D bickering so uglily, I let out a deep sigh internally.
(Even so, I think this is a highly advantageous condition for your side. Sure, it involves mandatory deductions if repaynts stall, but we haven't set any penalties beyond that. It's just a matter of paying back a little extra color at the end... and yet, you'd rather cut loose a comrade you've shared joys and sorrows with for a whole year just because you hate spending your own pocket money?)
Scanning the room, I searched for the figure of the lone man silently observing the scene.
(…Kiyotaka. What are you thinking? If it were you, you'd be fully capable of uniting this abnormal space. Why are you just spectating?)
Whether he noticed my gaze or it was pure coincidence, Kiyotaka turned his expressionless eyes toward .
"Everyone, calm down! Isn't making sure no one gets expelled from the class the most important thing right now!!"
Hirata shouted at the top of his lungs, louder than he ever had before. His face wasn't just painted with anguish; it was flushed bright red with intense fury.
"How... How can you say such horrible things! A classmate might get expelled! There is absolutely no reason why anyone should be hurt!!"
When Hirata slamd his hand onto a desk, the classroom fell dead silent for a brief mont.
"Hirata-kun is right. Even putting emotional argunts aside, we should not allow an expulsion to happen here."
Rising as if cutting through the silence, Horikita voiced her agreent with Hirata.
"Since we lack the funds, borrowing points from Class A... in other words, taking on a massive debt, is necessary. Even so, compared to the crushing disadvantage of losing a mber and creating a nurical deficit against other classes, taking on debt to prevent an expulsion is by far the more rational choice for our future."
"Wait a minute! Horikita-san, you've been acting like a leader and talking down to us for a while now!"
Stepping up to bite back directly at Horikita's logical analysis was Shinohara.
"There's no way a class like ours can aim for Class A from here anyway! If we can't move up regardless, instead of protecting soone and emptying our pockets, it's absolutely better to keep our points even if it ans letting soone get expelled!"
"Shinohara's exactly right! Who cares anyway? This exam just ans the person hated by the class disappears, right?!"
Yamauchi chid in without a shred of remorse, tossing out a decisive remark with a flippant laugh.
"In fact, it's better for us if the guy dragging us down disappears!"
"…! You people are truly...!!"
At the cold, detached rationalization of the two, the sanity residing in Hirata's eyes snapped completely.
"How can you say so easily that it's fine for soone to be sacrificed!!"
Hirata's face distorted with rage, looking ready to leap across the room and grab them by the collars. As Hirata trembled with fury, the voices of the protest faction agreeing with Yamauchi and Shinohara began to overlap, accelerating the classroom into an uncontrollable state of chaos.
Overwheld by the unprecedented, abnormal fury of Hirata and the atmosphere of a class where logic completely failed to register, Horikita lost her words and stood frozen in place.
Tug, tug.
Beside , Hiyori quietly pulled at my sleeve. Looking down at her, Hiyori wore a sorrowful expression and gently shook her head.
(…Yeah. Further negotiation is pointless. In a state like this, it might have been better if we hadn't brought the point-lending proposal at all. By showing them a glimpse of hope carelessly, we've only deepened their despair. …To avoid saddening Ichinose, who went out of her way to set this up, I'll keep this hideous outco to myself.)
Quietly closing my eyes, I resolved to terminate the negotiation.
"—Hmph. Feel free to pull each other down at the bottom of a unsightly mire. To those who lack even the will to grasp the stars in the sky, not a single ray of the light I provide shall exist."
Just as I let my stylized, arrogant parting words echo through the classroom and turned my back, it happened.
"Wait! Aizen-kun!"
Along with a sorrowful cry, Hirata called out as if clinging to a final lifeline. His face was painted in deep despair, and his outstretched hand trembled faintly.
"I swear we'll definitely pay it back...! I'll take responsibility and handle it sohow... so, please, sohow...!"
(…Hirata. You really are a bottomlessly good, sweet guy.)
Looking at the desperately appealing Hirata, I felt a quiet wave of sympathy internally.
(But as expected, we can't lend the precious points our classmates worked so hard to save to a class in such an utterly disastrous state. Even if you say you'll bear it alone, there's a limit to what you can do, and even if we tried to enforce mandatory deductions, with that kind of attitude, many students would resist, and the discussion would never reach a consensus.)
No matter how much Hirata struggled alone, the collapse of this class was already far past the point of recovery.
"—Know that there is no salvation in the sky you look up to while crawling on the ground."
I delivered that cold, definitive rejection and took a step forward.
"Ah... Ah..."
Behind , I could sense Hirata, his hope completely shattered, collapsing powerlessly to his knees. Even so, I left the Class D classroom without looking back.
Walking out into the hallway and putting so distance between us and that chaotic classroom, Hiyori, walking beside , murmured softly.
"…I feel sorry for Hirata-kun... but in that state, we truly can't lend them anything, can we...?"
"...Yeah."
Echoing Hiyori's calm assessnt, I replied quietly while keeping my eyes fixed forward.
"Those who choose the path of drinking muddy water require no outstretched hand. …They are rely destined to wither away within the narrow boundaries they have drawn for themselves."
Near the end of lunch break.
When Hiyori and I returned to the Class A classroom, Ichinose and Kanzaki were already there. The four of us gathered to report our respective negotiation results to one another.
"Unfortunately, the negotiations fell through. Class D failed to achieve a consensus regarding repaynt, and they couldn't et the conditions for the loan."
To avoid hurting Ichinose unnecessarily, I withheld the hideous bickering and the reality of them cutting a comrade loose for selfish reasons that had taken place in that classroom, conveying the result strictly as a "mismatch of conditions."
"I see... So it didn't work out with Class C or Class D either..."
Ichinose lowered her eyes sorrowfully, letting out a small sigh.
"Our proposal should have been a perfectly reasonable offer. But with the other classes completely fractured internally, signing a contract was impossible no matter how hard we tried."
Kanzaki stated the objective facts plainly.
(…Kanzaki is right. Though in reality, it went past the level of 'opinions being split' and was already completely broken.)
Adding that andnt internally, I gave a quiet nod.
(In the end, forcing a concession out of Tsukishiro was a good move... but the ones who actually benefited were strictly Class A and Class B, who possessed the financial power and solidarity to avoid an expulsion.)
Bringing a piece of rolled olet to my mouth, I turned the gears of thought internally.
(If Ryuuen hadn't stepped down, he might have collected the points under his dictatorial regi, and the discussion might have yielded a different result. Even so... that display from Class D was incredibly severe.)
Yamauchi, who sold out a comrade for his own self-preservation and went as far as demanding that others foot the entire bill as if it were a given. And the students who were willing to condone a comrade's expulsion just to save a few tens of thousands of points right in front of them.
(…No, perhaps I can't bla them entirely. Having been at the absolute bottom of class points since enrollnt and forced to live in extre poverty every month, if they're suddenly asked to hand over their ager savings in full... it wouldn't be surprising for students to react that way.)
I turned my gaze toward the dejected Ichinose in front of , Hiyori and Kanzaki quietly eating their lunches, and our classmates chatting rrily around us.
(If our class ever fell into the sa situation... everyone would undoubtedly choose the path of spending their own cash to save a comrade without a mont's hesitation.)
An overwhelming "disparity." It wasn't just a difference in points. It was a difference in class philosophy, solidarity, and the heart to care for one another.
Reaffirming the unshakable bond of Class A, I turned my thoughts toward the upcoming "Class Poll" tomorrow.
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