However, the board of directors revised the rewards.
Class A's reward increased to 200 Class Points.
As for Class D, despite the school administration surely seeing through cameras that they also obtained the school rules, they're not focusing on them.
Sae understood why.
"Chie, there's no point being wary of me." She said, "Honestly, I don't have high hopes for this year's students."
Indeed, no hope.
Houtarou Oreki from Class A offered Class D a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity by selling them information. It was a chance to gain Points and possibly rise to Class B's level.
Yet, out of 33 first-year Class D students, each needing to pay only 10,000 Points for the school rules, a mere 11 were willing to stay and listen.
The outcome is predictable.
Even with the rules turning a closed-book exam into an open-book one, only 11 students — or fewer — might comply with the behavioral standards assessment.
So, out of 40 students, at least 29 are deadweight. How can they possibly advance?
Consequently, the Chairman merely glanced once before looking away, not even mentioning that Class D knew the exam rules.
There's no need for expectations; just wait and see. Even knowing the rules, Class D might deplete their remaining 900+ Class Points within a month.
How disappointing.
Admittedly, Sae's class differs from previous D classes, harboring more problematic students. But with so many useless teammates, can her long-cherished wish truly be fulfilled?
She had briefly felt excited, only to plummet into painful disappointment.
Moreover, this year's Class A is quite exceptional.
And what are these exceptional Class A students up to?
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Take Houtarou, for example.
He spent the afternoon taking a long nap, lying on his bed with sleepy eyes while a small orange cat weighing less than 10 pounds curled up on his blanket.
This was his family cat, named Haruki.
Initially, believing he would be living in the school dormitory, Houtarou had entrusted the cat to a close friend's care. However, since he could now freely commute between school and home, there was no need to leave it behind.
So he brought the cat back, resulting in an afternoon-long nap. Indeed, one's own bed is the most comfortable.
The Advanced Nurturing High School provides closed education, requiring students to stay on campus for three years. Moreover, Houtarou discovered that within the school, it's impossible to access anything beyond the school's forums and internal network.
It's even impossible to make phone calls to family members outside the school. In other words, the school has restricted the network and blocked signals from outside.
"..."
But if that's the case, doesn't it mean that people inside the school can't contact him when he's outside? This seems a bit troublesome.
'Oh.' Houtarou remembered.
He had asked Masumi to investigate places in the school without surveillance cameras. He felt he needed to return to school for a bit.
Also, he opened the refrigerator at home. Originally, upon receiving the news that he would be living in the school dormitory, he had emptied the fridge at the start.
The refrigerator remained empty, with only half a lemon inside for deodorizing.
Now that Houtarou could freely commute between the closed dormitory and home, he needed to replenish some daily necessities. Though his parents regularly sent living expenses, it would be wasteful not to use the school-issued Points.
His account now boasted 250,000 Points — equivalent to ¥250,000 — far more than his parents had ever given him.
Houtarou decided to take advantage of the school's shopping street.
After putting his clothes back in his bag, he eyed the system message before him.
〖 Do you want to use Teleportation now? 〗
'Yes!'
〖 Beep! You have 2 remaining Teleportations for today. Resets daily at 00:00. 〗
Houtarou nodded, and the scene before his eyes transformed.
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His eyes fell upon a 12-square-meter spartan apartment. The fluorescent light was off.
This was his room, 303. He had returned to the Advanced Nurturing High School.
Two new messages awaited him on his phone.
| Masumi Kamuro — Classmate |
| After an afternoon of investigation throughout the teaching building, shopping street, and other school facilities, I found cameras almost everywhere. Only 5 places lack surveillance. |
She then provided specific details:
| 1. The Special Teaching Building, where experimental items are stored. Its first floor has no cameras. |
| 2. The stairwells in all teaching buildings are camera-free. |
| 3. While the shopping street is heavily monitored, most shops lack cameras inside, except for high-value stores like electronics retailers. |
| 4. The railings at the edge of the artificial island are unmonitored. The area is pleasant, quiet, and sparsely populated. |
| 5. The area near the vending machines close to the student dormitories also lacks cameras. |
'Masumi, you've worked diligently, investigating all afternoon.'
After brief consideration, Houtarou opened the money transfer page on his phone. A message appeared.
| Transfer 50,000 Points to Masumi Kamuro? |
He confirmed the transaction and opened her contact. The student ID linked to the personal account allowed direct transfers with just the recipient's number.
Moments later, likely noticing the transfer, Masumi's reply arrived swiftly.
| Masumi Kamuro — Classmate |
| Also, is your phone broken? When I tried to check your GPS location this afternoon, it showed as blocked. |
'Oh. You don't need to know about this.' Houtarou thought.
He knew it was because he had left school grounds, so she couldn't contact or locate him.
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Houtarou ventured to the shopping street, which — despite its modest name — was bustling with activity. It offered everything from food and entertainment to drinks, daily necessities, and even study-related shops.
The street boasted bathhouses, karaoke bars, art galleries, and cinemas. It seemed the school had ensured students' needs were met, even while restricting them from leaving campus.
Naturally, he stocked up on some essentials.
"That'll be 6,500 points. Please show your student ID."
The clerk was courteous as Houtarou purchased a large bag of items.
Teacher Mashima had been correct — Points could indeed be used as currency, and prices at school were slightly lower than outside.
Considering the distance back to the dormitory, Houtarou opted for a shortcut. His plan was simple: find a spot without cameras and people, then use Teleportation.
He chose the camera-free area near the vending machines that Masumi had mentioned.
However, as he approached—
"My sister got assigned to Class D..." A somewhat familiar male voice drifted over.
Drawing on his sharp memory, Houtarou quickly identified the speaker.
Manabu Horikita. The Student Council President. The same one known for leaking information.
"In the end, I'm the one who's embarrassed. Have some self-awareness!"
Surprisingly, this guy looked as if he might strike his sister.
'Ah.' Houtarou felt he'd stumbled upon something significant.
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