Classroom of the Elite, Kusuo Saiki

Although Chabashira Sae seemed to be being sarcastic about the class's previous performance, she was actually quite pleased inside.

"Teacher, you should at least tell us the detailed basis for increasing the points in advance!"

At that moment, Hirata Yosuke stood up and spoke to Chabashira Sae.

"It's the same once you enter the workforce; personnel reviews won't tell you the detailed content of the investigation."

Chabashira Saeko maintained her smile.

"However, you should still feel fortunate. As the worst class, D, the preparations you made before the exam were still meaningful."

After speaking, Chabashira Sae picked up the marker on the podium and wrote lines of text and numbers on the whiteboard behind her.

A list of points for each class in Grade 1.

Class A 940cp

Class B 650cp

Class C 490cp

......

Class D 550cp

"As someone who was originally predicted to be the worst class, D, it's quite remarkable that you still have over 500 points because of that exam. I originally thought you bunch of defective products would have completely deducted all your points."

Chabashira Sae's gaze swept over each student, seemingly enjoying their surprised expressions.

【hateful. 】

Kusuo Saiki heard a very unwilling voice coming from behind him very clearly.

The source of the sound is Suzune Horikita.

"You discovered in advance that you could buy the test questions, right? Although I don't know how you found out about this information, it certainly worked."

As Chabashira spoke, she took out a huge report card and pasted it on the whiteboard.

This time, the class average score was very high, exceeding 80 points, while Kusuo Saiki scored 81 points, placing him in the middle, though not exactly in the middle.

Seeing his results, Kusuo Saiki was quite satisfied. After carefully controlling his score, his ranking was in line with his expectations.

It seems that 50 points is still a bit low.

Kiyotaka Ayanokouji's thoughts reached Kusuo Saiki's mind. Because the class average score was relatively high this time, he, who only scored fifty points, was actually in a relatively low position in the class ranking.

Even with the test questions, the trio of idiots still managed to occupy the last few spots.

'Looks like it was a false alarm. Class A's points were significantly higher than the other classes, even nearly 300 points higher than the second-place Class B. Was it because they knew the school rules beforehand, or were they simply excellent students in both character and academics?'

Kusuo Saiki was unaware of this, as he had never had any prior contact with the people in Class A, nor was he interested in it.

In his eyes, the better Class A is, the better it is for him. The chances of their class being promoted to Class A are relatively low, which also makes it less likely for them to attract the attention of other classes.

"According to the S system, the school will rank each class based on the class's score rating."

Chabashira Sae raised her head slightly, and the upward curve of her lips seemed to become even more pronounced.

"Congratulations on successfully replacing the previous Class C and becoming the current Class C. For you who were originally considered trash, this is something to be proud of!"

Chabashira Sae's words carried a hint of sarcasm, but she was also genuinely happy inside.

The fact that Class D, which she led, was able to advance to Class C in the first exam was a pleasant surprise for Chabashira Sae.

No matter what methods are used, as long as the desired result is achieved, that is enough.

"We've been promoted to Class C?"

"So ABCD is the class order? I didn't know that... Wait, if we were in class D at the beginning, wouldn't we be last?"

"Then we've moved up one place in the rankings, that's great!"

As soon as Chabashira Sae spoke, the students in the classroom immediately started discussing it enthusiastically—and quite a few of them actually felt happy.

Why, why was I assigned to Class D?

At this moment, Kusuo Saiki could hear Horikita Suzune's discontented thoughts with perfect clarity.

If the ranking is based on students' abilities, then according to my entrance exam scores, I shouldn't have been assigned to Class D...

Are these hopeless bastards actually feeling smug about being promoted to Class C?

Even if it's Class C, it's only second to last... No matter what, I have to get into Class A. I must catch up with my brother.

Unlike the other students, Horikita Suzune felt only resentment; her desire to improve the class's performance was much stronger than that of the others in the class.

"Look at you all! You're already this happy just because you've been promoted to Class C?"

Chabashira paused slightly, her smile not fading, seemingly anticipating the students' next reaction.

"You can be happy for a moment, but don't forget that the class's points can change, and the next assessment is the midterm exam next month—once the points are overtaken, you will be back to being Class D, which is no different from a defective product."

'Tea Pillar-sensei seems to have always looked down on Class D, but aren't you a teacher of Class D yourself?'

Kusuo Saiki thought to himself, "That's what I'm complaining about."

"The class with the best results in the next midterm exam will receive 100 points—but there is another rule in the actual exam."

“Starting from the next exam, anyone who fails the midterm or final exam will be expelled.”

The expressions of almost everyone present instantly turned serious.

Chapter Twenty-Three: Knowing the answers and still getting the worst score, you're something else!

"Is it true that I'll be expelled after the official exam...?"

"Is it possible that the teacher said it on purpose to scare us?"

"I, I don't know."

Upon hearing Chabashira Sae's words, all the students present began to discuss it.

This news was no big deal for Kusuo Saiki, because he already knew about the rule on the first day of school.

"I hope you can at least hold onto your Class C position in the next exam."

"Tea Pillar Sae said with a smile."

.....

After the class ended, Chabashira Sae left the classroom immediately, and the somewhat heavy atmosphere from before did not ease much.

Although they achieved a score higher than Class D in this exam, after learning that any student would fail in future exams, almost everyone felt a growing sense of urgency.

Except for a few.

"Putting everything else aside, I still want to thank you, Kushida-kun!"

After class, Kanji Ike walked quickly to Kikyo Kushida and expressed his gratitude.

[I can talk to Kushida-kun again!]

'Your real purpose is to chat with Kushida, isn't it?'

Kusuo Saiki, who had read Ike Kanji's inner thoughts, remarked.

In a sense, he was also somewhat grateful to Kanji Ike and Ken Sudo, among others. If they hadn't been so careless in class and hadn't scored so low on tests, their class might have been promoted directly to Class B. Although they wouldn't have been as prominent as Class A, they would certainly have been feared by the two classes behind them.

'However, to achieve such a score given prior knowledge of the exam questions is, in a sense, quite remarkable...'

Kusuo Saiki thought to himself, while Kanji Ike and the others remained firmly in the bottom three positions.

"While staying in Class D while maintaining enough points would be the best option, as it would reduce the number of classes that see us as a thorn in their side, being promoted to Class C is acceptable for now; it's a pretty good outcome."

Kusuo Saiki breathed a sigh of relief.

As far as he knew, the first month at this school was the most crucial time for the grading, essentially assigning a base score to each class. Subsequent exams did not have as much impact on the class's points as the grading in the first month.

If they don't end up in Class D but stay in Class C, that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Anyway, Kusuo Saiki has no intention of climbing the ranks, so staying in the back is the best option.

"Although there are midterms next month, we can say we barely passed today!"

"How about we have a celebration tonight?"

"I think it's a good idea. Um, Ayanokouji, would you like to come along?"

Just then, Ike Kanji turned his head and looked at Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, who seemed to be in a daze, and asked.

That guy named Ayanokouji Kiyotaka is also at the bottom of the class, he's just as useless as us! We should stick together for warmth!

'This is the first time I've ever seen someone so proudly call themselves trash.'

Kusuo Saiki turned his head and placed his gaze on Kiyotaka Ayanokoji.

"What about me?"

Kiyotaka Ayanokoji seemed somewhat surprised that Kanji Ike would mention his name.

[Kanji Ike invited me to the celebration. I don't think we had much interaction before. Was it because my grades were relatively low, like theirs, that he chose to invite me?]

'That's right, you were absolutely right.'

Humans are inherently social beings; some choose to rely on those stronger than themselves, while others choose to associate with those weaker to demonstrate their own abilities...

'Hey, it's just an invitation, there's no need to overthink it...'

If I refuse, it might worsen my already strained interpersonal relationships.

Although Ayanokoji Kiyotaka went through many changes in his thoughts, in reality only about a second had passed.

"okay."

Kiyotaka Ayanokoji gave an affirmative answer.

"Well, everyone."

Just then, before anyone could leave the classroom, Hirata Yosuke walked to the podium and began to speak.

"I hope everyone can listen to me for a moment, especially Sudo-kun."

"Tsk, what does that have to do with me?"

Sudo Ken seemed to know what Hirata Yosuke was going to say, and showed signs of impatience.