Class 1-A.
After returning from the gymnasium, students filed into their assigned classroom. With no predetermined seating arrangement, everyone chose their spots freely.
Houtarou selected a seat by the window, affording him a view of the kapok trees outside.
At the podium stood a tall, slender man in a blue suit and white shirt.
"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Tomonari Mashima, your homeroom teacher. I'll be guiding you for the next three years, and this will be your permanent classroom."
Teacher Mashima's sharp eyes conveyed the impression of a social elite. His words carried significant weight.
"Our school operates under a unique system. All students are required to live in dormitories until graduation. Now, if you check your school-issued phones, you'll find 100,000 personal points in your student ID. These points, deposited monthly by the school, function as currency within our campus. Remember this: here, you can purchase anything — provided you have sufficient points."
Following his instructions, students began accessing their phones. Houtarou, too, opened his student ID.
『Houtarou Oreki』
『Student ID: 1008610010』
『Gender: Male』
『Class: First Year, Class A』
『Personal Account: ¤ 100,000 Pts』
"In terms of purchasing power within the school, points are equivalent to the outside world. 150 points can buy items worth the same value in yen." Teacher Mashima explained.
In essence, the school not only provided boarding but also covered living expenses. With tuition-free education and living expense subsidies, it seemed quite reassuring.
However, Houtarou scrutinized this information more closely. He didn't think this was necessarily a good thing.
After all, "free" often comes at a hidden cost. Waiving tuition fees and providing living expenses — what kind of charity was this? It's worth noting that this school, funded by the government using taxpayers' money, would quickly shut down if this information were exposed.
Yet, this school not only maintained a great reputation but had also existed for over fifteen years. This suggested it had its own system in place.
This situation reminded Houtarou of experiment-related books he had read, discussing paid experiments where participants unknowingly became test subjects. He also recalled how research facilities needed to produce qualified results to secure ongoing investments.
However, his class was Class A. Surely someone would notice these peculiarities soon, right? After all, everyone here was quite exceptional.
Pondering this, he glanced towards the frail, silver-haired girl he had judged to be exceptionally intelligent: Arisu Sakayanagi. The girl he had determined to be a genius.
Her seat was right in the middle of the classroom. She hadn't uttered a word. While everyone else checked their phones, she didn't follow suit, as if confirming this information was meaningless to her.
Indeed, they couldn't use these points for shopping right away, so checking the student ID didn't hold much significance at the moment.
As Houtarou observed her, she suddenly turned her head and smiled. It felt as if spring flowers had bloomed, pink petals falling gently, emanating a faint fragrance. Cute, he thought.
"..." He caught himself.
No, that wasn't right. He quickly averted his gaze.
He refocused on the blue virtual frame that had appeared before his eyes. If he wasn't hallucinating, then he must have encountered something truly unusual. This phenomenon had been following him since it first appeared during the entrance ceremony in the gymnasium.
〖 Super Ability System 〗
〖 Choose one of two Tasks! 〗
〖 ① Take Arisu Sakayanagi's cane and play with the T-Rex while it's small! 〗
〖 ② Investigate this school and earn 200,000 Points! 〗
〖 Task Duration: 1 Day 〗
〖 Task Reward: Teleportation (3 times daily to previously visited locations) 〗
〖 Task Punishment: Your sister drops out of school to spend three days with you! 〗
Hmm. The punishment looks quite daunting.
Houtarou isn't an only child; he has an older sister. His parents, usually working for overseas dispatch companies, are rarely home. Since last year, his sister has been attending university, so she's hardly ever around either.
To him, his sister is an eccentric yet accomplished individual. Her favorite pastime? Teasing her little brother. He shares a common predicament with many younger siblings — despite his sister's beauty, she's as fierce as a tiger.
If this sister were to drop out of school and return home to spend time with him alone, the scenario is unthinkable.
So, let's examine the tasks at hand.
〖 ① Take Arisu Sakayanagi's cane and play with the T-Rex while it's small! 〗
Houtarou glanced at Arisu, or more precisely, at the black cane beside her desk.
Although she appeared cute and likely possessed a high IQ, her physical condition was unfortunately poor. Should he really consider taking her cane? She probably had few chances to leave home, let alone walk outside. Coming to this school might be her opportunity to experience the world.
She might have arrived with high hopes. Would taking her cane force her to face the cruelty of the outside world prematurely?
He couldn't bring himself to do it. It wasn't about chivalry — he simply felt that, as an ordinary person, he had basic moral standards to uphold.
Given these considerations, it seemed he could only choose Task 2.
〖 Selecting Mission! 〗
〖 ② Investigate this school and earn 200,000 Points! 〗
〖 Sure you want to select Task ②? 〗
'Yes!' Houtarou affirmed inwardly.
Upon making this choice, he noticed the system prompt before his eyes had changed.
〖 Main Task: Investigate this school and earn 200,000 Points! 〗
〖 Task Duration: 23 hours 59 minutes 〗
〖 Task Reward: Teleportation (3 times daily to previously visited locations) 〗
〖 Additional Reward: Set home as Base Point, allowing unlimited daily Teleportation home 〗
〖 Task Progress: 10%+0% 〗
The task became more specific. Simultaneously—
〖 Beep! Congratulations, host has received a Newcomer Gift Package. 〗
〖 Received Additional Reward: Set home as Base Point, allowing unlimited daily Teleportation home 〗
Oh. Going home, huh.
Going home?! Can he go home directly?
Due to his sister's excellence and occasional unreliability, Houtarou handles most of the housework. He's also deeply attached to his bed.
When Mr. Mashima mentioned boarding for three years, he felt quite uneasy. After all, how could a new place compare to the familiarity of a home he's lived in for over a decade?
Isn't a 12-square-meter single apartment just a glorified pigeon cage? Could he really freely go home and sleep in his own spacious bed?
For him, this is fantastic news. However…
〖 Additional Advice: As the host has not yet obtained the Teleportation ability, it cannot be used. 〗
In other words, he needs to complete the task of investigating the school and earning 200,000 Points.
So, he raised his hand.
"Oh?"
Everyone looked over.
⍟⍟⍟
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