AN: In collaboration with DarkDrawerJ and RedGlitchFox, we put our heads together to write what we hope is a fun ride. We want to shake things up in Classroom of the Elite and we have the man for the job! Crossposted on fanfiction.net!
What does it take to reach the top?
This is a rather vague question that receives even vaguer answers, but I found myself thinking this over as of late after finally finishing the last novel in a series. It was pretty irritating in many ways, because it only serves to solidify how I feel about how the world works. In the Novel, we get to watch from the viewpoint of the protagonist who was trained from an early age to excel in every aspect of what a human would believe is needed to reach the top of the world.
Naturally, there are many characters in it, each with their own personalities and one of the most glaring aspects is which characters would excel.
I've been keeping up with this series for a couple of years now until it finally released the final volume last week and I can only sigh at the outcome.
In the end, only those willing to change themselves to fill a needed role or put on a facade long enough to deceive others were able to reach the ending where they manage to build a happy ending for themselves while those who were honest to a fault were quickly removed as the story progresses.
In the end, the ones who deceived were rewarded and the ones who stayed true to themselves were punished.
How frighteningly accurate. I'm getting chills.
It was a shame too as many of the characters in the story were cute. I could tell the artist was very loving in their creations, but unfortunately most of the ones I liked ended up taken out of the story too early! The protagonist had all these alleged "capabilities", but he just ignored all these genuinely nice girls who cared about him? If it were me in his place, I'd do things differently! I'd start from the beginning where-
"Don't you think you should give up your seat?"
What an asinine question. I'm in the comfort of my own room, why should I give up my spot? Wait, I don't recognize that voice.
Opening my eyes, I could see that I was not in the comfort of my own room, but a bus filled with a bunch of passengers all looking in one direction.
It was an argument that I had to blink twice to really believe I was hearing right.
"You there, can't you see the old woman having trouble?" An office lady was next to an old woman standing in front of a young and well built man sitting in what looked like the priority seat. Everyone was drawing their attention to the commotion she was creating, but the man in question didn't seem too bothered, merely smiling as he crossed his legs, showing a rather flippant attitude.
"That's a really crazy question, lady." He responded, looking apathetic towards however she was feeling. "Why should I give this seat to an old woman? There's absolutely no reason for me to give it up."
I can't believe that I was witnessing an eerily familiar scene, as if watching it straight from a television. I was able to vaguely recall how this exchange went from the Office Lady getting more and more agitated as the conversation continued until it reached a standstill where the blonde highschooler decided to put on his headphones to begin listening to music, tuning out the frustrated Office Lady as the Old Woman tried to reassure her that she was quite alright, not wanting to escalate the situation any further.
"Um, I also think that the lady is right."
And there she was. There was no doubt in my mind that this was happening as in front of me stood a beautiful girl with beige colored hair as well as a body figure that a certain female I knew from my past would find herself hard pressed to match.
I couldn't make sense of the conversation anymore as my eyes widened in realization of where I was, my mind racing, causing me to look left of where I was sitting to confirm my thoughts.
Long beautiful black hair with uniquely crimson eyes that pierced me the moment I met them. My eyes refused to drift downwards due to our close proximity, but the sight of her face was enough to nearly make my heart skip a beat. Her expressionless face that began to form into a look of annoyance from the prolonged staring had me immediately turn away, lest I incur her ire.
Wait. If i'm sitting right next to her and the scene was happening in front of me... Then right beside me must be...
No...
Brown hair and brown eyes with a fair complexion. Completely average in terms of unique characteristics, but the complete lack of emotions from his eyes was enough to make me uneasy on a first glance, having been caught off guard by the void there seemed to be within them, causing me to quickly look away on reflex.
There was no way. I couldn't possibly be... but I was! The exact scenario playing before me was exactly like the start of the series I had been keeping up with for the past few years and right beside me were two of the protagonists!
I was in "Classroom of the Elite"!
I had to really take a moment despite doing everything to confirm this wasn't a dream.
Did I die? This type of thing in stories happens after dying, doesn't it? How else would I have ended up in the very stories I read? This is what one would call an "isekai", right? I was just in my room though! This isn't right...
While still stuck in disbelief at my situation, the bus slowed to a stop as all the students made their way to exit. My own attire had somehow turned into the school uniform for Koudo Ikusei Senior High School, meaning I was somehow a student?
Either this is a weirdly convenient fever dream or someone up there really wants me at this school. And while my first instinct is to turn back from this school and to go to a normal high school, something tells me things are not that simple.
So naturally, I got off the bus with all the other students, keeping an eye on our main characters.
"I would advise you to keep your fish-eyes off of me if you wish to keep them?" a prickly voice sniped at me.
While my first instinct with that voice is to bite back due to my familiarity with verbal fights, I realized quickly that it wasn't Yukinoshita talking to me. Makes sense, since unlike Yukino, she was much more selfish and self serving.
It was, of course, Horikita Suzune, one of the two protagonists in Classroom of the Elite. She's a peculiar character with some contradictions that show just how twisted her pragmatism can be. She certainly was of the mindset of keeping strong allies together even if they were untrustworthy later on, but right now she was distancing herself as much as possible from everyone else, at least as far as the story was concerned.
"Are you deaf? I asked you a question and all you're doing is staring again." She seemed to be rather annoyed at me being lost in my own thoughts, but who could blame me? She was essentially a fictional character that was now standing as living flesh in front of me.
There were a lot of things that Zaimokuza would have to say about this, but the less I think about that big idiot, the better. Right now I had to figure out how to handle this girl who was beginning to lose her patience.
"Good grief... I simply mistook you for someone else. The similarities are rather uncanny, actually." I answered, taking another glance at her.
No doubt. On an initial glance she'd have the same beauty and air of superiority as Yukinoshita and that didn't exude the icy air she was now exuding in waves towards me, however.
There were two differences in terms of appearance that Yukinoshita would kill me for recognizing. Two very big differences that I made sure not to linger my eyes on.
"That's a rather shoddy excuse for staring at a young lady like me. Couldn't you have come up with a better excuse than something a lecherous old man would try and say to prove his innocence?" She didn't seem convinced in my half truth as her venomous tongue continued to burn me.
Wait, shouldn't I try to get Ayanokoji involved here?
Like a train departing from its station, I realized I was too late to catch him as he had just disappeared into the crowd, away from this constipated interaction.
Seems I was on my own.
"I have nothing else I need to say to you. What you choose to believe is up to you, but don't you have somewhere to be right now?"
Every other student seemed to have left us behind, so we were the only ones wearing the same type of uniform in the crowd, but she didn't seem to be bothered, keeping her arms crossed with a glare that I'm pretty sure was meant to kill.
Seems like it won't be that easy to get her to leave...
"If you're going to get so hung up on such a little thing as someone looking at you, I think you need to reevaluate your priorities in life." I began to be more snide with her, finding her insistence on prolonging this conversation for what feels like just for the sake of talking down to me to be an annoyance that I didn't really have time for since I've been taken from my home and transported into a fictional story.
Her biggest concern is probably getting a good grade in Algebra while I'm trying to figure out what went wrong in my life to put me here and what I have to do to survive, so I think it's fair to say I have the bigger priority.
Horikita kept her gaze on me for another brief period, having not changed her expression in the slightest despite the slight jab towards her, before she seemed to have decided on something and turned around.
"You're right. I have bigger worries currently than to deal with some shady looking boy who doesn't even try to be discreet on the train when ogling young ladies like me."
She left with those parting words before walking off to progress the story and hopefully her character development.
I remembered again that my presence had completely overwritten the original interaction she was supposed to have with the main character which was the catalyst to their tentative occasional partnerships that progressed the story.
There was nothing I could do about this, unfortunately, but I can still play it safe by making sure I don't get in between the two of them anymore.
(-)
Hikigaya Hachiman
Staring down at my nameplate in the seat I was assigned, I found myself wanting to hit myself for having challenged Murphy's Law like that, because whatever force had brought me here also seemed to have a sense of humor, having seated me not only in Class D but also right between the protagonist and the main heroine.
To the left of me was the main protagonist, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka. He appeared to be rather restless despite his completely stoic attitude. His eyes were shifting from each student in rapid succession and it made me uncomfortable to watch, as if he was an eagle ready looking for an easy victim... but wait... If I remembered correctly, the main character near the beginning simply had the goal of making friends...
It wasn't until many different circumstances from the teacher to his past catching up with him that he began to distance himself! This could be a chance to shift things in a different way by being his first friend!
Unfortunately, Murphy seemed to be particularly spiteful towards me despite my status as a saint, because who would show up besides the one person who could stop me.
"You, from before...!" Horikita exclaimed, before realizing where she was seated, resulting in a scowl to form on her face.
It was times like these where I missed Yukinoshita only playfully disliking me as opposed to being so outright despised by a pretty lady. Oi, oi, just because you're rather rotten on the inside, doesn't mean it doesn't hurt less to be so rejected by you, you know?
"It looks like the world has something against me. How was the seating chart decided? Does your last name even start with the same letter as mine?" I snarked, before realizing that actually... Yes, our last names do start with the same letter...
That didn't mean that the seats were chosen by alphabetical order, though, since this guy to the left of me's last name started with an A.
"Having to sit next to you throughout the entire semester already makes me feel tired and it's just the first day." She lamented, but she still took her seat anyway.
What are you complaining about? The seating arrangement will be the least of our concerns by the end of this month, but you don't know that, do you?
I didn't bother to say anything else to her. A conversation with her with her current character would be like trying to climb Mt. Fuji right now.
Thankfully, she seemed to realize that I didn't have anything else to say to her.
Good, I don't have time to talk to brocons anyways. My biggest concern was on how to fix this situation where this socially awkward introvert near the window won't have an aggressive and egotistical brocon to nag him into helping his class.
Well here goes an attempt.
"Yo."
His eyes flickered over to me, registering that I had talked to him. That cold calculating stare was quickly replaced with confusion as he had trouble responding.
Noticing his gaze, I could figure out his intentions. Horikita's presence isn't usually ignored so easily. "Her? We had a minor altercation when exiting the bus. Speaking of the bus, that was a pretty crazy thing to happen, right?" Small talk that won't alert him to anything is the best I can do right now.
His head tilted slightly as the first words from him came out in a muted tone. "Yes it was. I was worried something dangerous would come of it for a second there."
A lie as naturally as a truth came and went. If I didn't know any better, I'd think otherwise. Nevertheless, it's time to lead the conversation to my advantage.
"At least that girl there seemed to have the situation under control," I said, referring to Kushida as I gestured her way. "It's lucky that we're in the same class," I said with 10 layers of irony as I also gestured towards the blonde up front. "Of course, we're also in class with the source of that incident."
Ayanokoji had already noticed him by the unsurprised look in his eyes. Either that or he just didn't care. "It appears that is the case."
As stiff as always. I expected no less of the protagonist. Eyeing the teacher's figure entering the classroom, it was time to leave Ayanokoji with some food for thought. "Well, class is starting and it looks like everyone has their friend groups already formed. I guess us loners should stick together then."
"Loners?" He asked, repeating the specific word I used to describe us.
I nearly bit my tongue, realizing that I said a little too much. Maybe I was showing my hand too soon. While he certainly matched the part, it is a tad early to be saying anything like that.
Before I could try to fix my mistake, the teacher spoke up loudly to get everyone's attention.
"Ahem, good morning new students. My name is Chabashira Sae and I am in charge of Class D this year. I teach Japanese history. This school doesn't rearrange the classes every year, so over the next three years, I hope I get to know all of you. Best regards. Although the entrance ceremony will be one hour from now in the gym, I will now distribute the list of special rules of this school and the matriculation guide." Her voice carried the tone of authority and seriousness that I'd have expected from reading the novels.
Chabashira Sae or Chabashira-sensei. Despite being Class D's homeroom teacher, she was one of the earliest obstacles. She held no love for Class D and took a certain amount of pleasure when she got to tell them that they'd be receiving no points after the first month.
She's also the reason the main character began trying to seriously get to Class A while being the very same reason he stopped out of spite.
A weak and pitiful character who puts up a tough facade in spite of how fragile she is. A history of failures and betrayal left us with this jaded and cold teacher. Her past reflects how she is now and even I couldn't help but feel sorry for her, but that didn't mean I'd go easy since right now she's the sole reason why the difficulty Class D goes through was a lot harder than it had to be in the beginning.
"I will now hand out student ID cards. With this card, you can buy anything from any of the shops and facilities around campus. It works like a credit card. However, be careful of how many points you use. There's nothing you can't buy at school. If there's something on school grounds, it's purchasable." She continued her explanation after going through the layout of the school, the rules and was now going into the most important part. "Student cards can be used by swiping them on the mac-"
I begin tuning her out again. I've already seen this explanation in three different formats, which only made me wonder if I was in the light novel, manga or anime version of Classroom of the Elite.
So as the class began to buzz in excitement over how much money they were being given, I waited for my moment to turn this over. I wouldn't let her apathy towards us ruin my financial stability.
"It seems like no one has any questions... well then, ple-" She began before I made my move, cutting her off by raising my hand.
This seems to have taken her by surprise. I'm guessing she didn't expect anyone to ask questions after they were told they were given such an exorbitant amount of money for free.
"Yes... Hikigaya?" She called on me, having checked her list to confirm what my name was.
"Yes, about the points. Do we only get a static one hundred thousand points per month or is there a way to change how much we get per month?" I asked, being careful with my words as to not let on how much I knew.
There was a momentary pause and she didn't let it show that my question had caught her off guard, but I can tell. People try to hide it when things don't go as they planned and I can tell her eyes changed to take a harsher gaze before answering.
"As I've explained, the amount of points you get are a reflection of your skills, so it is possible to raise how much you are able to get every month." She explained, seemingly skirting around the answer I needed everyone to hear.
You could've done a lot better than that, "sensei".
"Does that mean there's also a way for us to lose how much we can get every month?" I asked, taking advantage of the situation.
Normally, I'd have to spend my points outright for questions like these, I believe, but if she were to make me pay just to know about how our monthly allowance is earned, then that'd be suspicious enough to make everyone wary about simply spending all their money so easily.
Chabashira seemed to be trying to figure me out as our eyes met. I did my best to look like I was just a simple student curious about this new school and all its rules with curious eyes and a heart full of excitement.
I don't think she bought it, because when I tried smiling she scowled.
Ouch. That hurt, sensei.
She seemed to be debating on how to answer my question without giving away too much as the class slowly realized that something was amiss. I couldn't see the expressions of the two seated beside me, but I was certain that they were smart enough to figure out that there seemed to be a catch to the generous allowance they've been given.
"It is possible to have your monthly points reduced." She finally answered.
There was some mumbling among the students before another person raised their hand.
"Yes... Hirata?" Chabashira turned her attention to another boy who seemed to have caught on to what was going on.
Yosuke Hirata, a handsome and nice guy who, unlike a certain someone I know, genuinely wishes the best for everyone. If I'm able to get him to trust me, he'd be an indispensable ally who I can trust to an extent.
Unfortunately, a good heart doesn't mean he'd be helpful with any of the bigger issues I'll have in the future. Despite his high stats, he's the type to break down at even the thought of upsetting someone due to his past.
Really, this entire class is a mess. Everyone here has issues including the teacher and I kind of resent the fact that I was placed here. If you're going to kidnap someone from the comfort of his own home and have him forced to participate in a sadistic school for a bunch of problem children, couldn't you have at least placed him in a nicer place like Class B at least?
Maybe I should at least be grateful that I wasn't placed in Class C...
In any case, Hirata speaking up here is a nice chance for me to fade away as if I had never spoken up although I doubt that those two next to me will forget about it any time soon. Thankfully, the most I've shown off can be reduced to a curious student's question even if sensei might think differently.
"What exactly can we do to prevent us losing our points?" Good job, Hirata, asking the question on everybody's mind. Well, everyone except me and Chabashira-sensei of course.
Chabashira-sensei sighed as if us being concerned over our points was a bad thing. Seriously sensei? Is it that much trouble? "What else? Being a student this school can be proud of."
"What is that supposed to mean," the redhead meathead, Sudou Ken, yelped. While a character that proves useful in physical challenges, he definitely lacks subtlety. Maybe I'll fix that later...
"It means," sensei replied, glaring at Sudou's rude outburst, "that the school will be making sure that any student here that is not fit for Koudo Ikusei will be let go of."
Her words brought chills to everyone in the classroom as panic swept over once more. My eyes shifted over to find that even Horikita was alarmed by this news. Her facade of stoicism was broken through and will continue to be broken through.
On the other end, Ayanokoji's mind was moving a mile a minute. Yes, our protagonist has probably picked up on a few things our precious sensei has omitted. While the specific rules are purposefully vague, there are some questions that need to be asked aside from those rules. For example, do other people affect our points? Can other classes make it go up or down? Does being in a higher level class mean more points?
Ayanokoji was most likely musing the true answer to those questions right now.
"I will be taking no further questions on the subject matter. If you do have any questions, please raise them in private."
Ah, trying to get us to pay the price for our curiosity. At least, the information we do have will stop Class D from self-destructing as much.
Chabashira-sensei checked her wristwatch and sighed as she announced, "There's half an hour until the Entrance Ceremony starts, do what you will before that time." Chabashira-sensei then hung back standing firmly in the front of the classroom, waiting to see what our class might come up with.
After some seconds of pure silence, Hirata stood up with a refreshing smile that tried to put the new information the class had learned behind them, saying, "How about we get to know each other then? Everyone can introduce themselves. I assume that's allowed, sensei?"
Chabashira-sensei gave a half-hearted nod. Probably because she just said "do what you will".
"I'll go first then. My name's Hirata Yousuke. Back in junior high, lots of people called me Yousuke. Feel free to use my first name! I guess my hobby is sports in general, but I especially like soccer. I'm planning on playing soccer here, too. Nice to meet you and let's do our best as Class D!"
Nothing much has changed from his original introduction, I think. Aside from the comment at the end, everything seems to be in line with his character.
That introduction kick-started everyone to do their introductions, allowing me to get a refresher on a lot of background characters.
Seriously, how am I going to remember every one of these characters with two lines that get important roles later?
Some specific introductions stood out to me the most.
"My name is Karuizawa Kei. I guess I'm like, totally into fashion or whatever," she said non committedly. She's neither putting on her fake facade nor her 'true' wimpy facade. This is just a stand-in for however she tries to attain power. Her gaze is already trained on Hirata, that is something that I'll have to fix considering how she ended up.
It was truly sad after all, for such an originally strong character to be broken down before the series had even started, resulting in her having something similar to agoraphobia, so she latches onto the nearest person she believes can protect her, but this unfortunately lead to her downfall as she dragged others with her in her unyielding grip.
How troublesome.
The next one that was interesting was someone to be especially careful around.
"Hi, my name is Kushida Kikyou. None of my friends from junior high made it to this school, so I'm alone here. I'd like to get to know all of your names and faces right away and become friends as soon as possible!"
Yikes, that greeting brings a chill down my spine knowing how she really is. I have to admit, seeing her act in person makes it seem real... if it wasn't for a few of her quirks, i'd have been swayed even.
"My first goal is to become friends with everyone. So, after we're finished with introductions, I'd love for you to share your contact information with me!" Yeah right, I'm sure you would love all our information. I'll have to deal with her soon if I don't want her to become a problem.
Of all the characters in "Classroom of the Elite", I would say she is by far the most troublesome. A seemingly nice girl who's cute smile belies her sadistic nature. She doesn't care about anyone, she merely pretends to so she could be the most popular, because that's the only thing she cares about.
Of course, that was insincere, since she merely wished to be number one in everything, but with geniuses like Horikita around, she quickly gave up and decided to try for something more reasonable like creating a caricature of herself for people to fawn over.
It was truly nerve wracking, remembering everything she'd try in the future, but as long as I play my cards right, she won't even register as a threat anymore.
After her was another person I'd need to do something about.
"What are we a bunch of kids or something? I don't need to introduce myself. I doubt that's what the school is looking for to be 'proud' of us. People who want to do that can go ahead. Just leave me out of it!"
Sudou seemed annoyed at the ambiguous threats that Chabashira-sensei revealed. He didn't understand it when it was brought up and Chabashira-sensei certainly didn't offer a charitable explanation.
A meathead through and through while also being another nuisance, but easily manipulated. While I wasn't going to be the type to use people as puppets, it'd be good to have him see me as a friend for certain things in the future. I'll need all the help I can get and winning over someone so simple would guarantee my safety. It also didn't hurt that he does become an indispensable asset to the Class later down the line.
Hirata and his fangirls had their spat with him and surprisingly, although Sudou refused to introduce himself, he stayed in his seat. Huh, maybe Chabashira-sensei's warnings are affecting him in some way. At least maybe now some new introductions will be given which was good for creating some sense of a bond by at least knowing each other's name.
"I-I'm Airi Sakura... It's nice to meet you all..." Was the simple introduction the next character I could personally remember gave and this was one that truly surprised me with what I remembered of her.
While she didn't exactly reenact Emperor Hirohito, the fact that she had even introduced herself was an event in itself from how I remember her being this early into the story.
Airi Sakura, one of the saddest stories I could ever fathom having read through the light novels. She was a poor and pitiful girl who was meek, shy and introverted which resulted in her barely having a presence in class despite her secret.
I remembered how her story ended almost perfectly. Despite her efforts to improve not just because of her crush but for herself, she ended up sacrificed by the very same person who gave her the will to want to improve.
Even though the situation was surreal and I knew I was essentially inside a story I've read, I was already making plans to prevent her from suffering the same fate that she had in the original story.
The class didn't dwell on her introduction too much as we were already moving along. One by one, I could barely recall some of these characters while others I didn't have too strong of opinions on.
Hasebe, Yamauchi, Koenji, Yukimura... All notable characters for the roles they play in, but besides the blonde narcissist who I knew better than to even consider for anything with how volatile he was in terms of usefulness, I thought it best that I didn't even bother to try and make any plans around him.
This all eventually got brought around to the two main characters of the story, most notably Horikita who would have also been gone if it wasn't for my meddling.
Horikita Suzune. In the original story, she was one of many characters who did not bother with an introduction, having left after Sudou's angry remarks. This led to her being rather distanced from the class, only being in the back of everyone's minds due to her beauty and cold attitude alone. It was even telling that it took months for anyone to even know her first name, but of course, the protagonist was able to learn it within five minutes.
Her eyes were closed momentarily before she seemed to have sensed that everyone was staring at her. Opening them, she had a sharp gaze, letting everyone see her striking red eyes.
"Horikita." She said sternly, before returning to her own business, signaling the end of her introduction.
Haah? Is that really all you coldhearted brocon? Were you trying to seem mysterious? That was worth zero points. No wonder you didn't introduce yourself in the original story, you would've totally blown it! It's a good thing you left if that's all you were going to do!
As I ranted inside my mind, I could already hear whisperings from my fellow "classmates" ranging from "She's so pretty" and "Wow, so cool." making me realize how much I hated this class again and that I resented being put here by the unknown force that thought it'd be funny.
"Th-thank you, Horikita-san..." Hirata awkwardly smiled, seeing that that was all she was going to give. "Um, can you please introduce yourself too?"
Oh, right, it's my turn next.
"Yo. This is Hikigaya Hachiman. This school is a fresh start for many of us, so let's do our best. Regardless of how things may have been for us before this school, let's treat this as a new beginning." I relaxed my shoulders as my voice reverted to its normal monotonous sound and said, "I'll be counting on you."
The class was silent as no one knew how to react. Even Hirata stuttered out an awkward, "A-Ah, next then?"
I could see the uncomfortable looks that Kei was giving while there was a momentary twitch in the smile that Kushida had. It seemed that my introduction worked out as planned as I didn't even try to hide that I was directly looking at them.
Even though most of the other people didn't quite understand what I meant by my words, I know these people that will remember me for it. Those people's cooperation is vital for this class' success.
Ayanokoji was next and as per canon, he messed up his introduction, securing himself as a background character of the class. How very annoying. He's holding back so much while I'm doing the best I can! Why am I having to fret over all these issues while you get to sit back and coast on being the main character?!
Then the biggest issue herself came up to me after the introductions were over and everyone began to chat amongst themselves as we awaited for the entrance ceremony.
Kushida had already begun to make her move as she walked around to collect everyone's phone number, going to each student one by one if they hadn't simply flocked towards her.
After the spectacular failure of Horikita so coldly and rudely dismissing her attempts to get her info, she came to me with a bright smile that I couldn't find a single thing wrong with. I really had to commend her on her acting skills, because no matter how I look at her, I couldn't sense a single inkling of deceit.
That didn't mean I was relaxed, if anything, it made me more unnerved as she stood in front of me with a sugary sweet smile that promised nothing but diabetic happiness.
"Hikigaya-kun~! Would you mind exchanging contacts?" She asked in a way that I found was almost impossible to reject.
.
.
.
But I did anyways.
"Sorry, Kushida-san. I'd actually like to keep my contact private. I don't want to hand mine out so easily as it feels like I'd be skipping steps in establishing a friendship." I explained, giving a blatant lie while not even trying to smile to soften my blatant rejection.
"Oh? It's usually common for people to exchange contacts first to establish a clear line of communication to create such a bond between two people." She tried to reason.
"Everyone does it like this, so you should too!" was the logical fallacy she was trying to get at. A normal person listening to our conversation wouldn't find anything wrong with what she was saying, but for just a moment, I can see how even the main character himself initially fell for her tricks at first.
"I get that. I guess I was just raised to be a bit more reserved, though I don't think it should matter too much. You have so many other people to be friends with. I don't believe I'm deserving of your time after having only just met." I gave a self depreciating answer while praising her.
Compliment someone and they'll feel good enough where they might stop whatever they were trying to obtain from you to begin with.
"Ah, but Hikigaya-kun...~ That just means that you're unused to how things normally are. That means as a classmate, I should do my best to try and help you adapt, after all, strangers are just friends you haven't gotten to know yet~" She seemed to narrow her eyes slightly, not backing down and I couldn't really get why, but I wasn't going to let her gain the advantage that easily.
"Kushida-san, I genuinely appreciate your willingness to provide me with your attention and time so easily, but really, I believe others are more deserving of it. Please, in time, I'm sure we'll fully be able to share with someone as lovely as you, but for right now, I simply wish to take things gradually and don't want to rush." Now I feigned a friendly facade to try and have her ease off.
There wasn't even the slightest break in her mask as she simply nodded, tilting her head in a cutesy way before saying. "Of course. Just come to me anytime if you ever need help with anything!"
And just like that, she had moved on, walking over to Ayanokoji to easily get his contact info.
Now, now, Protagonist-kun. You're supposed to put up more of a fight than that... I guess it couldn't be helped that he was so easily swayed to give his contact info. After all, what was the worst she could do with getting his contact info?
On the other hand, I needed to keep my own information secret, not because the info was important on its own, but what keeping it hidden meant.
I could see it. I could see Kushida's gaze constantly flickering between Horikita and I. Even Koenji gave his number, after all.
I turned to Horikita who had already been staring at me with a stern gaze. This time she had been the one caught staring, but she didn't seem embarrassed in the slightest, simply doubling down and daring me to do anything about it.
Scary. I have to sit next to this girl for the next four years?
Eventually, Chabashira called for everyone to line up and get ready to go to the entrance ceremony, having been observing the entire class, waiting for the scheduled hour for us to depart.
"Be mindful of your actions while in and out of this school. You reflect your class and the school, so the standards for everyone are high." She threatened with a glare. Though she seemed to have been giving the entire class a rather cold and scornful gaze, her eyes seemed to have specifically linger on me.
Uh, sensei, I didn't do anything to you did I? What is this unfair treatment? The two protagonists didn't get any weird glare like I did! I don't even think you gave Koenji a look like that and he's a grade A jerk!
Despite her blatant ire towards me, I didn't divert my own gaze. If I remembered anything about her, it's that she's all bark but no bite, so our eyes were in a deadlock before she turned away first.
Hah, it seems I won this round. Do you believe you can stack up to me when I've survived countless battles with Hiratsuka-Sensei?
Please, there's no way you could ever measure up to that monster of a teacher. The thought amused me enough for me to even smile a bit as I remembered the sensei who would constantly put me into holds.
Yeah, Chabashira had nothing on her.
(-)
Chabashira Sae
As the students followed one another to their destination, I threw a glance at one of them, while making sure that he won't notice that he's being watched.
Hikigaya Hachiman.
I don't recall seeing his name in the official class list when they were handed out to us teachers but somehow, he's in my class and I even double-checked the student profiles.
Someone must have snuck into the lounge and placed his student profile with the others in my list. If that's what happened, then he doesn't belong here at all.
But then again, he has a student's uniform and he somehow knew that this was his class. This was further compounded by how he clearly had a seat while the class was at the normal amount of 40. Still, it was rather strange for me to not remember him, but everything lined up as if he was always meant to be here.
I could try inquiring about the chairman's help for this to confirm if Hikigaya was truly put in Class D, though something tells me that he already knows about this and has no issues in regards to it.
Nevertheless, I'm a little surprised that he's the only one among those defects who felt suspicious about the points they receive. Out of all of them, I expected Ayanokoji, Horikita, or Hirata to ask a question regarding the matter, but only Hirata did so and even then, only after Hikigaya asked about it.
Maybe his profile will shed light on the subject.
...What the hell is this?
Name:Hikigaya Hachiman
Age: 17
Family: None. Orphan
Height: 5'9
Student Evaluation
Academic Ability: A
Intelligence: A
Decision Making: A-
Physical Ability: B
Cooperativeness: B-
The Student Evaluation has him graded highly to the point where he'd have at least been able to be placed in Class A or B. How peculiar... That could only mean that...
Psych Profile: Despite his high potential being enough to place him in even Class A, Hikigaya Hachiman has many issues that hold him back which results in his placement into Class D. Such flaws include having a notorious fetish for teachers and little sisters.
His history holds numerous incidents of successfully attempting and succeeding to seduce any teachers who were within his strike range. This has led to many scandals that resulted in him having to switch schools.
A peculiar trait of his is also being able to sense when a lady has an older sibling, making them a little sister for him to set his sights on. How he is able to recognize someone as such is unknown, but Hikigaya Hachiman is not to be underestimated in this particular interest either.
Hikigaya Hachiman is a cunning yet cold and calculative individual with a high level of perception. He is able to adapt to many situations to the extent where he can turn a bad scenario into something that would benefit him. Able to read others as if he knew their entire life, it is recommended to keep a watchful eye of this individual, especially if you are about the age of 28 while being a single teacher.
Note: Teachers who are seemingly cold with a harsh exterior seem to grab his attention the most. It is advised to be extra wary if one manages to fit all these descriptions while also being shorter than this student.
The 28 year old single teacher who was standing at a height of 5'2 known to be especially cold to her students could only stare blankly at the profile she held in front of her, doing her best to maintain a cool expression, but inwardly she was beginning to feel nervous.
"How did he become a siscon without even having a sister?" Was one of the first things she thought about, before she got to the heart of the problem.
Was she perhaps in danger?
No, no, no, no. No way. There's no way a mere 17 year old had that much success. The report might have gotten info from exaggerated sources.
As Chabashira tried to brush off such absurd thoughts, she recalled the stare she had received from him before she left. It was an intense stare that she didn't expect. One that suggested that she was no challenge to him, as if there were more before her that there were more of a challenge. The faint flicker of a smile graced his face afterwards, almost like he was finding her amusing. She then noticed that there was another line of text.
Note 2: All of his victims became prey to him, even after dismissing such absurd notions. Underestimating him would be at your own risk. Be warned.
That was enough to confirm it for her, resulting in her making a promise to do her absolute best to completely avoid anything that seems suspicious from the young man.
(-)
After an entrance ceremony that was more boring than you'd expect from a school like this, every student was left to fend for themselves as the classes ended. At this point, this meant students would be primed and ready to spend their points, a rookie mistake for those not in the know of how powerful points really are.
Some people bought the bare necessities while others bought luxuries such as game consoles and expensive clothing. Hopefully with the threat of something greater happening, not everyone in Class D would burn through their points. We need every edge we can get considering what we'll be up against.
Speaking of which, for that exact reason, I'm having to do something quite dangerous for a self-proclaimed loner such as myself: socializing.
"Yo, Sudou, right?" I called out to the fiery redhead who would threaten to beat you up if he even felt somewhat agitated around you.
Truly something I should be praised for even thinking about doing. Maybe I should buy a luxury item like Vita-chan to reward myself...
"And what's it to you?" Sudou barked back. How very hostile.
"Easy there. I just thought you looked like a basketball player. You seemed like you'd be pretty cool to talk with." I said, resisting the urge to use the same type of voice I'd use to try and calm down a rabid dog.
"Oh? Now you're speaking my language! I aim to try out for this school's team. I used to play a lot in junior high but the team I had was so shit at the game that I barely had a chance to shine! I swear the number of times they..." He prattled on with passion and pride, thumping his chest with his fist. Huh, I didn't even have to pretend I was a fan of the game. As it turned out, small talk wasn't so hard after all!
We were on the way to the general student store, out of the way from everyone else. While it wasn't a big deal to not get seen with Sudou, I didn't want to have to encounter someone like Ayanokoji, especially after mentioning the 'us loners' schtick.
Although if I remember right, Ayanokoji does make his way here as does Horikita. This might be a problem. I should probably try not to interfere with THIS interaction at the VERY least.
"Man, it's so easy to talk to you man! I'm glad there's one cool person in Class D. Hey, you wanna go for a pickup game later?"
Ah, now it's time to pretend I'm a fan. "I don't know man. Something tells me I wouldn't fare well against you. It takes a lot to aim for the school team. I don't think I have the guts facing someone like that."
"You're too modest, man. Don't worry about getting destroyed, it happens to most people I face," he said with an eager face.
That should've sounded reassuring, but the fact that he had already decided that he'd demolish me was pretty impressive since he was basically telling me he wanted to "dunk on someone", pun intended.
"Maybe later. I'm really not too confident. Though, since we're heading to the student store, do you have anything in mind that you want to buy?"
He didn't care that I changed the subject as he answered with a lot of uncertainty.
"I have no plans. I just thought that if I see something I want, I'll buy it. The school gave us a bunch of points so we might as well spend them."
I- I don't think he's worried enough about our points increasing or decreasing! What a free spirited guy, but I guess I should have expected that, given his character. "I doubt that's given without a catch. It'd be like letting someone score on you over and over," I said, attempting to relate anything in terms that Sudou could understand.
"Maybe so, but what can I do about that now? I might as well make the most of the situation now, right?" He wasn't backing down so easily, but the caveat is that my pseudo sports knowledge seemed to be getting through.
I'll let him off for now regardless, but I'm sure he's going to come back to regret it. "I plan to save my points for a rainy day. Just don't come to me for points if you end up needing some," I 'joked'.
"Nah man, I'm not some sort of leech, so no worries." Hopefully that will be the case when the class points are calculated. "Oh hey, we're at the store. What're you thinking of buying?"
"Mostly just toiletries. I didn't pack many when I transferred here." Or any for that matter. I don't even know if I have other clothes somewhere at this point!
Upon entering, I instantly got the vibe of some souvenir store that overprices its items, but this store however both had the items of a general store and had the range of very cheap to high end.
It was a little jarring to see if I'm being honest, but with what had happened in the span of less than a day, this was far from the strangest thing.
Although, that does bring a question to mind. Is my one true love here in this world?
Ignoring Sudou for a minute, I searched through the soda vending machines to see that...
"Yes! It is, MAX Coffee!"
"Is that your favorite drink or something? I like energy drinks myself," Sudou commented. Oh you foolish stupid boy.
"Of course! MAX Coffee is the liquid that flows through my veins, my lifeblood itself!" I very quickly bought 5 and popped one open to drink. Ahhhh yes, sweet drink of the gods.
"Is it really that good? Let me have a sip." Sudou took the can out of my hand. I'll let him do that if it means another fan of MAX.
"Gah, that's way too sweet man. How do you like this?" Sudou asked, scrunching up his face in disgust.
I snatched my MAX Coffee back and replied, "Obviously if life is too bitter at least coffee should be sweet!" An old adage of mine, but a good one.
"Maybe so, but if coffee is going to be sweet, it should also taste good." He argued and surprisingly had somewhat of a point.
Bah, not everyone has the tongue to properly appreciate the treasure that is MAX Coffee.
"Shut up." I murmured, resulting in a laugh from him at my expense.
We wrapped up our shopping and exited without incident, that is, unless you count me having to pay for Sudou's purchases because he forgot his student id. Somehow, I forgot that small plot point at the beginning.
"I'll pay you back man, promise," He pleaded, putting his hands together.
I could only give a look of mild annoyance since among everyone in this entire school year, I think I knew best about how much every point would be worth.
"You better. You're not a leech like you said, right?" I joked, echoing his earlier statement, which seemed to bring a smile on his face.
"Not a chance!" He immediately ripped open the top of his prized noodles and immediately began to slurp it down.
"How barbaric," A familiar voice called out. Ah, Horikita, why have you graced us with your unwanted presence? Also, where was Ayanokoji? Wasn't he supposed to be here? Don't tell me... He's purposely avoiding you? Makes sense... He is a genius after all...
"Huh? You wanna fight or something, princess? You ever seen a guy eat noodles?" Sudou's short fuse was an easy target for Horikita unfortunately. It was somewhat amusing to see him talk to her like this with how badly he fell for her in the original story.
However, it appeared that he was unfortunately not her true target. Horikita ignored him, having turned to me with a scathing remark of "The perverted oggler is also here I see."
"Your delusions are as imaginative as your insults, Horikita. I find it troubling that your imagination of me is one of a perverted kind. Are you perhaps projecting your wishes?" I retorted with a roll of my eyes. Seriously, she's still stuck on this morning? Did she really go out of her way just to berate me? Hell hath no fury like a woman's scorn, I guess.
Before things could get too heated though, another voice interrupted our spat. This time, an unfamiliar one. "Hey, you guys first years? This is our spot!"
Ah, these no-names who don't even have unique designs. I was really slacking a bit in terms of my memory of the early events.
Come to think of it, I could actually play a game of "spot the important character" here and it's quite saddening that my own "design" was also rather lackluster in many ways.
"We were here first! Go find another spot!" Sudou barked back like a dog defending his territory.
It really was admirable to watch him growl and snarl at everything he found hostile, but really, this was going to be an issue in the future if I didn't stop it.
"You hear this guy? 'Find another spot," One says. It didn't really matter which, they were all interchangeable. "Someone doesn't know how to respect their elders."
"Eh? You're trying to say something, asshole?" Sudou's temper couldn't take the constant abuse, resulting in him standing up to try and tower over the other boys through an act of intimidation, then again... Sudou had the anger management skills of a shonen character after someone made fun of their friends.
Horikita sighed and started walking away, acting as if she had never been there to begin with.
"There's one good firsty. Now what are the other two going to do."
"As if that bitch mattered in the first place. I'm going to-" Before he could continue, I stopped Sudou with my shoulder. Horikita's absolute uselessness in the early game aside, we had to reel it in here.
"Hikigaya, what're you-" He looked somewhat surprised and so was I. It was like waving a red flag in front of a bull, I really needed to try and draw his aggression away.
"Just chill out. Trust me," I whispered to him before addressing the upperclassmen, "We don't want any trouble, so we'll be taking our leave."
"Ah, maybe you're not the defects from Class D after all." One of them commented as his two friends laughed along.
"The defects?" Sudou questioned.
"Just let it go for now. I'll explain once we're farther away," I said, surprisingly succeeding slightly at keeping an enraged Sudou under control. I felt like a dog owner now, not that I'd ever let him know that.
Once we were out of range of their taunting, closer to the dorms, Sudou glared at me, immediately railing into me. "Alright, what's your game, Hikigaya. You're going to let pansies like that walk all over us? They called us and everyone else from Class D defects!"
It seemed his pride was wounded which was understandable. Not too many people are able to turn the other cheek like the saint that I am, though it was rather amusing that he cared about "everyone else from Class D" being called defects with how abrasive he was earlier.
If Sudou is going to avoid trouble, someones going to have to keep a leash on his temper. For now, I'll be that person. "I know. It's humiliating, right?" I asked rhetorically.
"Then why didn't you let me clock that son of a bitch into next week?" He was becoming aggressive even to me, so he must be really angry right now. Not good, i'd rather not be clocked into next week myself.
"Because letting you do that would be letting them win. You've heard them. They called Class D, defects. For some reason Class D isn't looked upon favorably. That probably means they know something we don't."
"Then why don't we just force that out of them?" Really Sudou? Resorting to violence? The school would prefer blackmail. Let the professionals handle this one, buddy.
"This school has eyes everywhere. Getting into a fight usually means expulsion, so try and imagine what it'd be like in this type of school. Even if you're in the right, it's dangerous even fighting back with how you were acting back there. No matter which way you looked at it, they could easily say that you were instigating the fight."
"So what? We're just not going to fight back at all?" Sudou seemed frustrated, but that was good. It meant he was having trouble grasping the idea of not being able to just give someone a good battering, but grasping something nonetheless!
"No," I said, disagreeing immediately, "These problems require a more... delicate approach. Chabashira-sensei didn't just mean we'd be watched at the Entrance Ceremony, I think we're watched at all times. There's no way we're in such a prestigious school without a catch."
"So do you have a plan?" Sudou asked, his anger seemed to subsiding, seemingly grasping what I was getting at.
Feigning ignorance, I shook my head as I said, "It's not my place to say right now. We might have bigger fish to fry soon. Our points might be in danger after all. So, make sure to pay me back in points." I started walking away before turning back with one last comment, "Oh, and don't get into any fights!"
"Fine, fine,' Sudou muttered, clearly still aggravated. "Just don't act like you can order me around like that Stuck-up Hori-something girl!"
His last comment made me smile wryly, recalling how that "Stuck-up Hori-something girl" completely had him wrapped around her fingers in the later years.
Still...
It was clear that Sudou still needed some time to process everything. His mind wasn't built for strategizing, but he could see how the current situation was fishy for Class D. Despite how he acts, he wasn't a total idiot.
As I walked away, I caught a glance of a longhaired figure from afar. Was that the "Stuck-up Hori-something girl" stalking us? Nah, couldn't be...
(-)
Even though classes have ended, I don't feel like I should go back to my dorm room yet. Maybe it's because I got so used to club activities after school that I don't feel like going home until the sun starts to set. Really, I was still coming to terms that I was no longer in Chiba anymore.
This is gonna suck, but oh well.
Maybe I can try to figure out what to do while I'm out here, like how I'm going to deal with my classmates spending all their points recklessly during the first month of school. Then I need them to recognize that they're actually in school so they could act like actual students. I'd like to have an actual allowance to buy more MAX Coffee every month, thank you very much.
There is no way I'm going to the mall or out in the open where there's many people, so I chose to go back inside the school where the clubs and their members were the only ones left inside the place at the moment.
After searching through the halls, I felt disappointed that there isn't a comfortable spot for me to sit comfortably in and be alone.
Back in Sobu, there was a little spot by the staircase where I used to spend my lunch break everyday. It was even near the vending machine so I could buy MAX Coffee whenever I wanted. While it could get really hot there sometimes, it still gave me the peace and quiet that I needed after several hours of going through classes.
But no, these halls were loaded with cameras almost everywhere. I can't sit around here and talk about things that I shouldn't be talking about inside this school, not that I have anything really incriminating to say, but it's the peace of mind that matters.
So, I moved up the levels until I reached the roof, in search of a place where I can be alone with absolutely no one around.
This school really wants to keep a close eye on its students, huh?
Fortunately, there doesn't seem to be any cameras around here on the rooftop. It was just an open space with a beautiful view of the campus. The floor was stained with dust and dirt, which only meant that this place doesn't get cleaned up often, but that's not a problem, it means that no one comes up here often either.
A smirk appeared on my face as I felt like I had found Skypeia itself and was excited at the prospect of having it all to myself. It was always the rooftops! Funny how the most obvious spot in fiction is the one that's actually left alone in real life.
All right, then this shall be my spot from now on! I'll spend my lunch break here everyday, and I can figure out how to—
"H-Hikigaya?"
I blinked a few times as I heard a voice from behind me. Ugh, I spoke too soon and now I paid the price.
Quickly turning around, I noticed one of my classmates standing there, looking nervous about something. It wasn't just any classmate however, considering I recognized her.
Karuizawa Kei looked like she had been crying. From what I could see on her face, there were hints of red in her eyes and a few tear marks that haven't dried up yet.
I'm honestly surprised. Has she been up here since classes ended?
"W-W-What are you doing here...?" She asked in a voice that sounded no where close to the dismissive and apathetic one she had in the morning.
Standing here, I realized I wasn't in a part of the story that was originally written, but something completely off the pages of what I had read.
The reason I was brought into this world was completely unknown to me, but standing here in this unfamiliar scene that never existed in the original novels, I found myself fully solidified in my rationality that this truly was its own world and the reason for that was what I was about to do.
While there were many things my mere presence had changed, this was something in front of me right now that I can directly affect to change the course of the story with.
Which was preventing Karuizawa from following the same path that she had taken in the original story.