"Even though the school has disbanded now and we've all been assigned to different places, and the school took care of the dorm issue, when it comes to living expenses we have to work hard on our own."
"If your exam scores are above the average each time, you'll get a certain subsidy for living expenses. It's not as much as in the Advanced Nurturing High School, where we got a full hundred thousand a month, but it's enough for our basic expenses."
"And if you fail too many times, the job recommendation you get at graduation will be canceled."
"Master, you should know most of us were actually students of Class D, our grades weren't very good, so now everyone is searching for classmates with good grades to help tutor them, and we're holding study sessions in the library for last-minute exam prep."
Unlike the others, she had a master. She didn't need to ask for money from her family, and since her master was supporting her, she didn't need to worry about living expenses at all.
But it seemed like all the girls around her master were either rich young ladies or top, well behaved honor students. She not only couldn't give her master any help, her grades weren't very good either.
Would her master think giving her the position of discipline committee member was a bit of a waste.
"So that's how it is. No wonder you all don't have class at this time."
While listening to Karuizawa Kei's explanation, Hachiman looked around at the transfer students from the Advanced Nurturing High School who were basically all buried in their books, and nodded thoughtfully.
'Study sessions in the library? Last-minute exam rush?'
Turns out that even after being transferred here, these students still had to be tortured by monthly exams. But at Sobu High they were competing in studying on their own, this was something only they could rely on themselves for, they couldn't get carried by teammates.
No, studying could also be something he helped with.
"Then today I'll tutor Kei a bit. Don't be fooled by how I always skip class and don't study, but my teaching ability is actually pretty strong. No matter the subject, I can help you raise your grades quickly."
Hachiman reached out and touched Karuizawa Kei's blond high ponytail, smiling.
He had originally wanted to stop by the library for a walk to see if there were still any of those library girls who only appeared in the school's library.
Last time he saw the library staff Sagisawa Fumika and Serizawa Yukiha. Maybe this time he'd happen to see the other librarians too.
But now that he saw Kei and the others worrying about exams, he decided to help Kei first.
Kei herself was a girl who was actually pretty good at studying, but in middle school she had been bullied, hospitalized, took time off, and had all kinds of things that messed up her studies. She had only just started studying again not long ago, so her grades were still bad.
Kei lived in the apartment and had to go to and from school with her classmates every day, so last night he didn't call her over to study magic together, and she hadn't experienced the temporary boost to learning talent that came from his teaching aura.
"Tutoring? Then-then sorry to trouble you, Master! And since we're at it, I can introduce you to my friends today."
Kei froze for a moment, then nodded hard with joy, pulling Hachiman toward where her small group was sitting, whispering sweetly at him as she walked.
"Even though they definitely can't compare to those super amazing girls around you, Master, they're all really cute~"
She didn't want her master to think she was useless. Even if she was already his pet and didn't need to study, she still wanted to become an extremely excellent pet he could be proud of.
But now that the master knew everything, she didn't keep stewing about it.
The master didn't mind her bad grades, and he wanted to personally tutor her. Instead of worrying about her embarrassing scores, she should think about how to make her master happy.
And it so happened she had recently found a girl who seemed perfect to be the master's new pet, so she'd show her to him and see if he liked her. If not, she would stop thinking about it.
"Hikigaya, this is Sato Maya, Matsushita Chiaki, Shinohara Satsuki, Mori Nene, Sakura Airi, and Hasebe Haruka. They're all my good friends."
Kei pulled Hachiman to her small group and introduced him to the girls who had all lifted their heads to look at them.
"This is Hikigaya from Class F, the student council president's childhood friend, and the one on our discipline committee blacklist. I think everyone has heard of him."
"Sorry, since I didn't know if Hikigaya had time to come, I didn't tell you all in advance that I invited him to tutor us."
When Kei finished her simple introduction, she added that last line on purpose and gave an apologetic smile to Matsushita, Sato, and especially Sakura Airi.
Even though it was obvious that the master had skipped class and come out to have fun, and that coming to the library was almost certainly to play some library play with the only librarian present.
Since she was helping patch that up for her master, everyone's impression of him would definitely change.
As for whether her master actually had the ability to tutor them or not, she didn't doubt him at all. Everything she had was her master's. Even if her master asked her to offer up all her good friends, she would be willing. Her master didn't need to lie to her.
"Hikigaya, hello!"
Short haired and looking somewhat strong willed, Shinohara Satsuki widened her eyes in shock, staring at Kei and Hikigaya's clasped hands, her lips parted slightly.
Kei said Hikigaya was the student council president's childhood friend, but why did it look more like he was Kei's childhood friend?
So bold, stealing the student council president's boyfriend.
At first she had been like the others in class and thought Kei had taken shelter under the student council president Kaede, and had used connections to be placed into the discipline committee without a vote.
But seeing this, she tossed that guess aside. If Kei dared to steal the student council president's man, how could she possibly be seeking her protection.
"Hello, Hikigaya-kun. I didn't expect you and Kei to be so close, you actually skipped class to help us study."
The gyaru Sato Maya was also surprised. She greeted Hikigaya very politely, but she had a different opinion.
As someone with decent looks and an upbeat personality, she had been added to Sobu High's gyaru group.
In the gyaru group, she learned that Hikigaya hadn't been as popular in the past as he was now. His big change seemed related to the three gyarus in his class.
But no matter what caused such a big change, Hikigaya was very popular now.
The competitive swimmer Tachibana Mikari, who liked to fight with the three gyarus and always annoyed them, had somehow made peace with them. Instead of fighting, she often chatted in the group about Hikigaya.
And two other super popular gyarus in the group, Kitagawa Marin and Kita Ikuyo, also seemed very interested in Hikigaya's topic, occasionally commenting.
Recently Momioka Risa had joined in too. In the whole gyaru group, aside from a handful with bad reputations, most gyarus seemed to have a good relationship with Hikigaya.
Faced with something this jaw-dropping, Sato Maya even felt a strange illusion.
If she didn't know Hachiman, she might fall behind the trend and have nothing in common to talk about with everyone in the gyaru group.
Kei had only been at this school for a short time yet already got close to him and even had him come tutor them, which showed how impressive Kei was.
"Hello, Hikigaya."
"Hikigaya, it's a huge help that you'd come tutor us."
Matsushita Chiaki, Mori Nene, and Hasebe Haruka didn't think that deeply. Hearing that Hikigaya came to tutor them, they all welcomed him warmly.
Only Sakura Airi, with her eyes down, back hunched like a curled up little animal, kept raising her head and lowering it again, constantly sneaking glances at Hikigaya standing beside her.
"Hello, everyone. I didn't expect Kei to have so many friends. Looks like Kei is very popular in class."
Hikigaya was honestly surprised by Kei's number of friends and greeted them with a smile.
He thought Kei's group only had three or four people. He didn't expect she'd dragged in Sakura Airi and Hasebe Haruka too.
Those two were pretty solitary types. Even though their solitude came from different reasons, one being shy, anxious and introverted, and the other not liking others' eyes on her chest and preferring to be alone.
"Hehe~ It's nothing really, we're all good friends. Hikigaya, sit down. The exam starts tomorrow, so sorry to trouble you with helping us pass this test."
Hearing Hikigaya praise her, Kei felt both pleased and bashful, thinking he might have seen through her intentions. She quickly grabbed a chair and placed it between herself and Hasebe Haruka, letting Hikigaya sit between them.
Actually, her group wasn't that big. It usually only consisted of Sato Maya, Matsushita Chiaki, Shinohara Satsuki, and Mori Nene. It wasn't as large as Kushida Kikyo's group.
Kushida, with her charm that made everyone respond to her, had good relationships not just with classmates. Back at Advanced Nurturing High School she had quickly become friends with many students from other classes.
Even though Advanced Nurturing High School was abolished and they all transferred, Kushida still quickly blended in with those around her. She not only pulled Shina Hiyori, Ibuki Mio, and Shiranami Chihiro from other classes into her own group, she even became friends with many Sobu High students.
Except for their class's lone wolf, Horikita Suzune.
But even though she couldn't pull many pretty girls into her group, Karuizawa Kei found a girl perfect to be the master's pet: the timid yet unable to hide her proud figure, Sakura Airi.
Unlike her usual plain look with glasses, tied hair, and zero fashion sense, when Sakura Airi let her hair down she looked as stunning as Ichinose Honami from the former Class B.
After pulling Sakura in, the well built and close with Sakura Hasebe Haruka also joined their group.
"Mm! Let me see your actual situation. Your strong subjects and weak ones," Hikigaya sat beside Kei and looked at the entrance exam scores Kei had organized for everyone, getting a basic idea of their situation.
The good students were all taken by Kushida, and Kei's group didn't have very strong grades at all.
Of them, Matsushita Chiaki was a little better, but not by much.
The only comforting point was that none of them were hopelessly unbalanced. At most their scores had some gaps. It wasn't as ridiculous as Furuhashi Fumino, who was a genius in humanities but awful in sciences.
"Well, Hikigaya, are you thinking our grades are a little bad?"
Sitting next to Hikigaya, Hasebe Haruka glanced at Sakura Airi, who seemed to be sneaking peeks, then looked at Hikigaya, who seemed to have glanced toward Kushida's side, and she spoke up.
Especially since the foreign language ace Amasawa and the smart literature girl Shina Hiyori were both over on Kushida's side.
The remaining good student, Horikita Suzune, was a lone wolf and didn't interact with them at all.
Before Hikigaya arrived, their study sessions were basically just a group review, with no high scoring student capable of teaching everyone.
But she wasn't too worried. Aside from a small number of students with family conflicts or poor home conditions who needed the subsidy to ease financial pressure, they didn't actually have to fight too hard for the living expense allowance.
Most people's motivation to study came from the high quality job recommendations after graduation.
"No problem. As long as you all come a little closer and listen carefully to what I say, you'll definitely get through tomorrow's exam, maybe even get pretty good scores."
Hikigaya put down their score sheets and smiled at Hasebe Haruka, who had dragon bangs, a bright forehead, and a tear mole at the corner of her eye.
Just from her name, you could almost tell Hasebe Haruka had a great figure.
But in his memory, Haruka was a pretty withdrawn girl. Why was she being so upfront and talkative now.
"So confident? If we don't pass, would you be willing to tutor us until we do?", Haruka looked at Hikigaya with surprise and probed him.
Actually, most of their grades weren't that bad. In an ordinary school passing wouldn't be hard. They just needed to work a bit.
But Sobu High had too many top students, and the average score was pulled up high. Students who had been in Class D could only rank near the bottom here.
And with the exam tomorrow, even if Hikigaya stayed up all night tutoring them, she felt it would be impossible.
One or two people might raise their scores last minute, but teaching so many students multiple subjects all in one afternoon? If Hikigaya was that amazing he wouldn't be a student, he would open a tutoring center.
"Haruka, you're as cute as Kei, so of course I'd want to tutor you often. But passing tomorrow's exam will only take one afternoon of tutoring."
Hikigaya smiled and shook his head. Maybe they thought they were struggling at the end and didn't believe a study session could raise their scores much, but with him, last minute prep really could raise scores fast.
"Alright, come closer. Let's start the lesson."
Hikigaya didn't say more. He waved at Sato Maya, Shinohara Satsuki, Mori Nene, and the others across the table, signaling them to move in.
"I'll briefly go over the key points and run through some things that might appear on the test. Then when you do problems, ask me anything you don't understand."
He started with math, the subject where they were all weak, proving his ability through his tutoring.
In terms of regular teaching, even if he personally knew a lot and could score full marks, he couldn't raise their grades much in just one afternoon.
They probably knew that too. They were just trying to review together and hope to hit a few likely questions to pick up some points.
But, he had a cheat.
[Teaching Aura: Temporarily increases your students' learning talent. The better the teaching, the higher the boost, and the wider the range.]
Teaching Aura was actually a range ability, but since his aura was still weak, the range wasn't big.
When teaching magic, he had to hold them while teaching clearly and simply. But for high school level material, which was easy, no close contact was needed. Just listening nearby was enough.
Haruka and the others knew they were in the library, and even though they were all friends, they still had to stay quiet. They had no objection to moving closer so Hikigaya could quietly teach them.
Only that Hikigaya's voice was a bit too soft and not very clear.
Sato Maya leaned forward but still couldn't hear clearly, so she simply lay down on the table.
But once she did, she felt something was off.
"Hm? Huh? Huh?"
Sato Maya, propping herself up on the table, stared wide eyed at the turning pages of the book, then looked at Hikigaya who was wedged between Kei and Haruka. Her mouth slowly opened.
'This... Is he really this amazing?'
She heard Hikigaya quickly explain the key points and the steps for solving the problem, and she was just about to say she didn't understand.
But before she could say anything, she replayed the explanation in her mind and realized she didn't even know what she didn't understand anymore, or what to ask.
Directly solve the problem as instructed? Was it really that easy?!
Usually the teacher's lectures gave her a headache and she needed to think a long time to understand, but Hikigaya's explanation made her get it instantly.
Maya glanced at Mori Nene and Shinohara Satsuki, who also seemed to realize how amazing Hikigaya was and were inching closer. She couldn't help but lean even further in, listening with an even more serious and reverent attitude to Hikigaya sensei's private lesson.
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