I have a life simulator.

"So, the truth is..."

Kiyotaka Ayanokoji walked to the vending machine by the roadside, where students could pay points to buy all kinds of drinks, but only mineral water was free and did not require any points.

"It's like how schools provide basic support to students without credits."

"Students in classes B, C, and D can also receive free bottled water after graduation."

Kiyotaka Ayanokoji's remarks almost completely overturned Ninomiya's impressions of the school.

"But the school won't tell you that until you actually graduate."

He held up the cold drink in his hand, which required a considerable number of points to purchase:

"It needs you, like it's raising a venomous insect."

"Create a fictional character to entice a group of people, and then truly hone a group of people."

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka turned to face Ninomiya:

"But in the end, it's just a high school. Class A seems to be the only and best choice, but in reality, it may not be like that."

"If that letter is exposed, Ninomiya-senpai will definitely be expelled."

He walked to Ninomiya's side, leaned close to her trembling shoulder, and whispered:

"But I believe that Ninomiya-senpai will definitely be willing to take on this responsibility."

Kiyotaka Ayanokouji shoved the cold drink in his hand into Ninomiya's hand, the chill making him shiver involuntarily.

"This tastes better than the bottled water at school."

As the sun set on the horizon, Kiyotaka Ayanokoji turned and strode away.

Chapter Sixty-Four: The Overt Scheme Behind the Midterm Exam

"Has it been changed? It's just the same old thing in a new guise. Majima, the homeroom teacher, has her reasons. What kind of classes did I teach before? I always taught A-classes. Who are these people? You expect me to teach them? What's the level of Class D in the first year? There are only a few of them. Even people like Sato and Shinohara come to the study group. Can they learn? No, they can't. They don't have the ability, you know?"

"I've already failed the quiz at the end of last month. If this continues, I probably won't pass the midterm either. After the midterm, there's the final exam. Who knows, I might not even have to take the final exam. I'll have already been expelled for the midterm."

"On the other hand, the average score of Class D in the first year shouldn't be too high, which means the passing score will be relatively low..."

"Oh my, thank goodness. Most of the students in Class D didn't have a solid foundation from junior high school to prepare for this kind of exam. You don't really think they can cram for three months and suddenly make a huge leap to pass, do you? Let's be realistic. They should finish learning the basic knowledge from elementary and junior high school first. Mr. Majima's exam highlights are so detailed, he practically reveals all the questions. Do the students in Class D deserve such a homeroom teacher?"

"Yeah, from this perspective, it's pretty good that the tea pillar class teacher and Class D are locked together, so they can all rot together."

"Rotten—stinky!"

Cheers to Class D, Grade 1!

Horikita Suzune rubbed her temples, speechless at the exaggerated performance of the two people in front of her. Karuizawa Megumi was clearly the class representative of Class 1-B, but she blended into their Class D chat group so naturally that she didn't seem out of place at all, just like a complete Class D student.

"I get the feeling that neither of you is worried at all."

"Worrying won't make the students in Class D suddenly realize their mistakes and become good students all at once."

Kitagawa Ryo and Karuizawa Megumi gave each other a high five in a flamboyant manner, and he sat back down in his seat with a smile.

"Then I'll have all the students in the class go find Liang tomorrow. After all, someone always seems to be handling things with ease, and I don't need to help organize the content on the blackboard after every class, right?"

Horikita Suzune's sharp gaze pierced directly at Kitagawa Ryo. This was a plan she had come up with in the last two days: to seize upon the faint impressions that the D-class students still retained after each class regarding the content they learned in class, and quickly extract the exam scope and key knowledge points from them, writing them down on the floor during each break. According to her, for the D-class students' fish-like memory level, this would barely be enough to get them through the midterm exam without any problems.

"Didn't Fanbo say before that he could help Lingyin? Why don't you and her take turns?"

Kitagawa Ryo picked up Hotaru, who was rubbing against his feet, and casually said as he played with the cat's chin.

"good……"

Following Hotaru's soft fur, Kitagawa Ryo quickly became immersed in the world of petting the cat.

Horikita Suzune sighed almost imperceptibly, twirling the pen in her hand as she turned to Sakayanagi Arisu on the other side and asked:

"Sakayanagi, do you have any ideas?"

Sakayanagi Arisu, who was lying on the table with her eyes half-closed as if taking a nap, raised her head and lazily replied:

"I can guarantee that I will pass, which means I have already solved one-thirty-eight of the problem for Lingyin."

"...You're one of only two student council members in the first year, can't you try a little harder?"

"I can also guarantee that Matsushita will pass the midterm exam, which makes it one in nineteen, doubling his effort."

Lazily extending two fingers, Sakayanagi Arisu yawned. The afternoon sun streamed warmly through the window, casting dappled light on the table through the girl's silver hair.

"Speaking of which, where's Ichinose-san?"

"Let's have a study session in the library. Many of the girls in the class probably prefer Honami to Rinne."

Kitagawa Ryo, holding Hotaru's paw, threw a series of cat punches at the air.

"I'm done!"

While the group was chatting idly, Sakura Airi, who had been diligently and earnestly bowing her head with earplugs on the side, finally raised her hand with a sigh of relief.

Having worked full-time as an idol for two years, Sakura Airi's academic level was basically that of a first-year junior high school student, or perhaps even lower. So, as soon as her homeroom teacher, Majima, informed her about the midterm exams, Sakura Airi quickly sought out Kitagawa Ryo for one-on-one tutoring.

However, the final result was that Kitagawa Ryo's room inexplicably became a women's tea party.

Thinking about it carefully, it always feels like everyone is wary of the opportunity for others to be alone with Kitagawa Ryo.

"Liang, take a look at this for me."

"You can just change the answer yourself."

Although he said it, Kitagawa Ryo's body betrayed him. He dragged a chair to Sakura Airi's side, took a red pen from the pen holder, and began to correct Sakura Airi's test paper one by one, checking the answers.

I have to say, when I was in elementary school, I longed for the feeling of having a pen in hand that could control other people's fates. If our roles were reversed, I would show you what it means to...

Kitagawa Ryo got the fourth multiple-choice question wrong. He coughed lightly, feigning composure, and tapped his pen tip next to the test paper.

"Airi."

"Is there anything Liang wants to teach me?"

Turning his head, he discovered that Sakura Airi wasn't trembling with fear at all, as if her fate was being controlled. Instead, she had a bright smile on her face, and the upward curve of her lips made Kitagawa Ryo momentarily doubt whether he had misread the answer.

Looking again, yes, it was Sakura Airi who answered incorrectly.

"The fourth question."

"Uh-huh."

Sakura Airi leaned even closer, her face resting on Kitagawa Ryo's shoulder, and asked, her hands supporting her chin:

"This question..."

"Here are the steps to solve this problem. I've listed three different formulas from three different exam scopes. Just choose the one you can understand the most."

Across from her, Horikita Suzune deftly tore a page from her notebook and handed it directly to Sakura Airi.

"Just keep making changes, Liang."

Seemingly without any other thoughts, Horikita Suzune simply looked after her classmates. After doing all this, she lowered her head again.

"This is the same version of the Olympiad math problem book that he used before. It took me a lot of effort to buy it."

"If all goes well, I should be able to make it to the math Olympiad in the second half of this year."

"Take a look through it first, then we'll get ready to eat in ten minutes."

"I will review it for you after you finish."

Suddenly recalling this past memory, Horikita Suzune felt somewhat unsettled, and even the problem in front of her, which she could have easily solved before, suddenly became obscure and difficult to understand.

Compared to her stubborn and narrow-minded self back then, Horikita Suzune is clearly more perfect now.

He no longer adhered to his elder brother Horikita Manabu's views and indeed gained his approval.

But I always find myself, almost irrationally, reminiscing about those times, just like now.

Like a bare gum after all the teeth have fallen out, it has a strong presence. When you don't touch it, it feels empty and itchy like a tickle on your heart. But once you touch it, you will feel a sharp, hidden pain.

-------------------------------------

"Ayanokouji-san—how about we have lunch together? I've cleared my schedule for today."

After the morning classes ended, Kiyotaka Ayanokouji had just stepped out of the classroom of Class 1-A when he heard Kikyo Kushida's voice chasing after him.

"...Yes, no problem."

Slightly taken aback, Kiyotaka Ayanokouji quickly agreed.

"That's great. Ayanokouji-san hasn't contacted me since the last time we went to a mixer together. I was always worried that something might have upset her."

As if suddenly relieved, Kikyo Kushida let out a long breath, a sweet smile spreading across her face:

"Let's go to the coffee shop together then."

"Kushida-kun... whatever Kikyo decides is fine."

Kiyotaka Ayanokouji, recalling Kikyo Kushida's personality, quickly changed his tune. Although the exact relationship between Kikyo Kushida and Ryo Kitagawa was still uncertain, they would need to utilize Kikyo Kushida's personal connections to investigate the likely spies within Class A.

The two chatted about class topics as they walked toward the coffee shop. As soon as they pushed open the door and entered the shop, Kiyotaka Ayanokouji immediately felt the overwhelming atmosphere of the enthusiastic girls inside.

More than 80% of the customers in the coffee shop are women, creating a lively atmosphere like walking into a forest full of birds.

"Because the food here doesn't seem like something guys would eat."

Kikyo Kushida seemed quite familiar with the place. She led Kiyotaka Ayanokouji to a seat further inside with ease, and the waiter quickly brought over iced water and a menu.

Kiyotaka Ayanokouji picked up the menu and casually flipped through a couple of pages. It was mostly Western dishes and desserts like pasta or pancakes, which seemed like the kind of food girls would like. Judging from what he had observed as he passed by, the portions were not large, and a guy would probably need more than two portions to feel full.

Therefore, most of the guys you see aren't there for dinner; they're there to keep their girlfriends company. Some are even surrounded by multiple girls, looking like winners in life.

"Shall we go eat at the student cafeteria? I feel really uncomfortable staying here."

"You'll get used to it; the food here is quite delicious."

"And here you also have a good chance of being noticed by girls, who might even ask you out."

Kikyo Kushida skillfully ordered a set meal for Kiyotaka Ayanokouji, and said with a light laugh.

"I don't believe there's such a thing as a free lunch."

"That's not necessarily true, Ayanokouji-san. You know what? The girls are actually paying a little attention to you! And your name is even on the ranking list made by the first-year girls."

"Girls will notice me? What kind of ranking is that...?"

Kiyotaka Ayanokoji tried to communicate with Kikyo Kushida in a natural way, echoing her topics.

But deep down, you might have felt a sense of novelty, like the atmosphere of your imagined student days.

"There are many kinds of rankings. Like rankings of handsome men, rich people, disgusting people... and then there's—"

"I just don't really want to keep listening."

"Don't worry. Ayanokouji-san, you've impressively secured fifth place on the handsome guys ranking! By the way, first place goes to Kitagawa-san from Class D, second place to Hirata-san, and third and fourth place are both boys from Class A."

"The girls sometimes discuss privately whether class assignments are also based on looks."

Hearing the familiar name, Kiyotaka Ayanokoji didn't immediately ask directly:

"I remember Hirata-kun was a full member of the soccer club, right? How come he's only ranked second?"

"That's because Kitagawa is too outstanding. I heard that not only our grade, but also upperclassmen came to vote for him."

"But Ayanokouji-kun, you don't need to worry. There are so many boys in the whole grade. The fact that you were voted fifth proves that your handsomeness is recognized by most of the goddesses."

Should I be happy about this?

"Of course. Ah, but you're also ranked high on the gloomy list."

"That's it..."

Kikyo Kushida showed her phone to Kiyotaka Ayanokouji, whose screen indeed displayed various rankings of boys.

Some of them even had dangerous headlines like "Ranking of Boys Who Hope He Dies".

"So Ayanokouji-kun doesn't need to feel inferior at all. If he wants to, he can definitely find a girl to date."

I feel like it's because the reason I approached Kikyo Kushida last time was that I wanted to find someone to date, which left such a deep impression on me. It seems that in Kikyo Kushida's eyes, Kiyotaka Ayanokoji has become a rather thirsty guy.

"If I actually felt popular, that would be fine. But I don't feel that at all."

In fact, Kiyotaka Ayanokoji doesn't remember ever keeping half a love letter with a heart sticker in his shoe cabinet.

"I don't think all the girls participated in the vote, right?"