Time flew by in the blink of an eye, and the first day of May arrived before he knew it.
Only now did Shimizu Akira realize—he'd been in this world for a full month.
From the day Horikita Suzune met Shiina Hiyori during weekend tutoring, exactly half a month had passed.
During this period, nothing particularly noteworthy had happened in class.
After all, it was only the first month of school.
Student life was much like a corporate job: attend a few lectures, eat a meal, and suddenly it was Friday. Spend the weekend idling, and before you knew it, another week had slipped by.
Though unlike regular schools where students weren't salaried workers and didn't get paid for studying...
This high school literally paid its students.
Perform well, and you'd receive points.
At this thought, Shimizu instinctively pulled out his phone to check his balance.
The screen clearly displayed: 8,690,000
He'd spent over 20,000 points in just two weeks—a lavish expenditure by Class D standards.
Most of his classmates were pinching pennies—some cooking with free ingredients, others sticking to the cafeteria's complimentary set meals.
The reason was simple.
The vast majority of points from all four classes had been converted into cold, hard numbers in Shimizu's account.
His gaze drifted to the top-right corner of the screen: 6:59
According to Chabashira Sae, points were distributed precisely at 7:00 AM on the first of each month.
(Could it be... zero points because our class points are zero?)
The moment this thought surfaced, Shimizu shook his head.
Unlikely.
Ever since leasing the surveillance cameras two weeks ago, under Kushida Kikyou and Hirata Yōsuke's leadership, class discipline had noticeably improved.
Even if there were occasional violations, they could simply delete the footage before month's end.
The only irreversible deductions came from the first week's recordings and violations outside the classroom's sightlines.
The instant the clock struck seven, the numbers on his phone jumped.
8,690,000 → 10,498,000
A straight increase of 1,803,000 points.
"I see..." Shimizu narrowed his eyes thoughtfully. "So Class D's class points this month are 530."
Calculations unfolded rapidly in his mind:
*Class Points × 100 = Personal Points.*
Per the lease contract, Class D owed him 1.8 million personal points for their 3 million-point loan this month.
But as a Class D member, Shimizu himself would also have 45,000 points deducted as his share.
The remaining 8,000 points, plus the 45,000-point deduction, divided by 100, perfectly matched 530 class points.
"This result... is far better than expected! To think Class D managed 530 points?"
Just three weeks ago, daily reports had shown Class D at zero points.
Now, they'd somehow scraped together 530 points—53% of the total possible score.
Converted, each student would receive 53,000 points this month. After the mandatory 45,000-point deduction, they'd still have 8,000 points for living expenses.
But upon closer inspection... 470 points had been deducted just from the first week's footage and out-of-classroom violations.
Class D was... surprisingly competent in its own way.
*(Who was it last month that said we'd easily get 800-900 points?)*
Shimizu couldn't recall.
Whoever it was must be sorely disappointed now.
Truthfully, even if the school hadn't confiscated the first week's footage, cameras existed outside classrooms too.
The leased cameras had merely prevented 80% of potential deductions.
To Shimizu, 530 class points was perfectly acceptable for Class D.
Student Council President Horikita Manabu had once said the historical average for Class D was around 350 points.
They'd surpassed that by nearly 200 points.
"What about the other classes? Their scores should be higher than the original trajectory too." He murmured, recalling intel from last month.
Class Points After First Month (Original Timeline):
Class A: 940
Class B: 650
Class C: 490
Class D: 0
Now that Class D had 530 points, the others couldn't possibly remain unchanged.
Of course, Class A likely saw minimal fluctuations.
But Classes B and C should've gained at least 100 points each.
(Speaking of which... is there a cap to this scoring system? Is 1,000 really the max? Or is there no upper limit?)
The question surfaced abruptly.
If higher benchmarks existed, then 940 points might not seem so impressive after all.
Side note: The surveillance access for all four classes should expire today—officially reclaimed by the school.
At this thought, Shimizu remembered the throwaway account he hadn't touched in nearly two weeks.
Might as well take a peek.
Ryūen Kakeru:You bastard! Why'd the cameras suddenly cut out today?!
Ichinose Honami:So... you only leased them to us for three weeks?
Sakayanagi Arisu:Hehe... Just as I guessed. Expired right at month's end. How... short of you.
Kushida Kikyou:? Classmate?
"Well, saw that coming."
Shimizu didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
(Talk about a wave of one-star reviews!)
But honestly, it wasn't his fault.
The school had only granted him three weeks of access.
He'd have loved to extend the surveillance period too.
Especially with Ryūen Kakeru bombarding him with threats—vowing to uncover his identity and *forcefully reclaim C-Class's 3 million points.*
Shimizu wasn't worried. His hidden identity should be secure.
But then he recalled last month's revelation—Shiina Hiyori from Class C would eventually expose him.
"This complicates things slightly."
Future intel, if left unaddressed, had a way of cementing itself into reality.
In other words, if things continued unchanged, Ryūen would inevitably discover Shimizu's identity through Shiina Hiyori.
He just couldn't fathom how Shiina would deduce it.
He wasn't afraid of Ryūen's brute strength—but the boy's underhanded methods were another matter.
That guy played by no rules whatsoever.
Shimizu's sixth sense warned him—getting entangled with Ryūen would be a colossal headache.
"Seems I'll need to proactively approach Shiina Hiyori—or find a way to misdirect her deductions."