Megumi Kato was as calm as ever, and said in a flat and casual tone, "Is that so? I just think, given our relationship with each other, although we haven't known each other for a long time, calling each other by our first names isn't a big deal, is it?"
Upon hearing this, Asuna Yuuki couldn't help but be stunned for a moment and then tentatively asked, "But you've always called me Yuuki-san, and I thought you were the type of person who didn't like overly familiar forms of address..."
Megumi Kato shook her head and said calmly, "No. It's not like that. It's because you've always called me Kato-san. As the last one to join you, if I were to call you by your first names without permission, it would seem too presumptuous. That's why I've been using the way you address me, calling you by your last names plus suffix '-san'."
"So that's how it is?" Asuna Yuuki muttered, as if enlightened.
After learning Megumi Kato's true thoughts, Asuna Yuuki was somewhat amused and frustrated. Actually, she couldn't be blamed. After all, Megumi Kato's facial expressions weren't very rich; she always looked calm and composed, showing no emotional changes, making it difficult to guess her true feelings.
"Then from now on... I'll just call you Megumi, and you can just call me Asuna."
At this moment, Kotoko Iwanaga on the side also said with a smile, "And me! Just call me Kotoko. Anyway, that Asuna has already taken the liberty of calling me that without my permission."
Asuna Yuuki pouted and said crossly, "Tch, do I need your permission just to call you by your name?"
Kotoko Iwanaga slightly raised her chin and looked self-righteous and haughty as she replied, "Of course. For ordinary people like you, I am the God of Wisdom who maintains the order of the present world. I've decided, you'll call me Kotoko-kamisama from now on~ Remember to offer me lunch boxes as tribute every day."
"Hehe, wouldn't it be easier to offer tribute if I just dug a hole and buried you, then set up a memorial tablet for you?"
Looking at Asuna Yuuki and Kotoko Iwanaga walking ahead, bickering and noisy as usual, Megumi Kato followed beside Asagiri Utsunomiya, walking shoulder to shoulder with him, and suddenly spoke softly.
"Utsunomiya-san."
"What is it, Kato-san?"
Asagiri Utsunomiya replied with a smile.
Megumi Kato turned her face, stared into Asagiri Utsunomiya's eyes, and spoke softly.
"As expected, you did that on purpose, didn't you?"
Asagiri Utsunomiya pretended to be confused, shaking his head and saying, "What are you talking about? I don't understand."
"You're deliberately pretending not to understand, aren't you?" Megumi Kato asked as she tucked a strand of black hair behind her ear, having already seen through everything... No, in the end, it was actually her who was seen through.
Just having received the call from Asuna Yuuki and hearing her invitation to hang out together, Megumi Kato's heart was actually somewhat nervous and uneasy. After all, this was the first time since she joined the group that they were meeting up not to discuss game strategy, but just to relax like ordinary high school friends.
And for some reason, Asagiri Utsunomiya seemed to have seen through her inner awkwardness and uneasiness, and seen her desire to become closer to Asuna Yuuki and Kotoko Iwanaga, and also her hesitation about how to act.
That's why Asagiri Utsunomiya called her by her first name right when they met, smoothly bringing up the topic and allowing Megumi Kato to naturally express her true feelings, thereby reaching a stage of friendship with Asuna Yuuki and Kotoko Iwanaga where they called each other by their first names and were less formal.
"Utsunomiya-san..." Megumi Kato stared at Asagiri Utsunomiya's profile and said softly, "Although you usually talk and act like a lunatic, you're actually very yasashi."
"Are you roasting me?" Asagiri Utsunomiya suddenly retorted with highly aggressive words, as if that word, yasashi (lit. gentle), was the most insulting word in the world.
He continued: "Your face is like having muscle atrophy, you can't even make expressions, you're a flat-faced person, and you're insulting me?"
Megumi Kato said calmly, "I can make expressions, you know, like this one..."
Saying this, Megumi Kato stopped, walked in front of Asagiri Utsunomiya, tilted her head up, and made an expression with slightly furrowed brows and very serious eyes.
"This is what I look like when I'm angry or unhappy."
After making this expression, Megumi Kato returned to her usual calm and unruffled appearance, then spoke calmly.
"Utsunomiya-san, I don't think I've ever seen you angry or afraid... No, I've only seen you smiling, looking interested, and eager to try something. Other than that, you never seem to show negative emotions like anger, fear, or dissatisfaction. You're practically like a saint."
"Of course I can get angry and scared; after all, I'm human too."
"What are you afraid of?"
Facing Megumi Kato's curious question, Asagiri Utsunomiya spoke seriously.
"I, Asagiri Utsunomiya, sixteen years old, a male high school student at Shuchi'in Academy, am afraid that this world isn't chaotic enough!"
◆◇◈◇◆
The next morning, in the hallway of Shuchi'in Academy.
More students arrived at school early today than usual, and the first thing they did upon arriving was gather in the hallway outside Class 1-A. The reason was simple: after the exam results came out, the school would announce the students' rankings and post them there.
Kaguya Shinomiya, who was very concerned about the exam results, was no exception. She stepped into the hallway of the school building and walked towards her classroom with a calm expression. However, before she even got close to the crowd of students gathered there, she could already hear their exclamations and discussions.
"Is that real?"
"Holy cow! Is this even what a human can do?"
"Has anyone like this ever appeared in the history of Shuchi'in Academy?"
"I don't think so... My father also went to Shuchi'in Academy before, and I've never heard of any student who could score this high. Our Shuchi'in Academy exams are already harder than other schools; it's hard enough just to pass, let alone..."
Listening to the students' discussions, Kaguya Shinomiya's red eyes flickered, and a premonition of disaster arose in her heart.
"Shinomiya-san is here."
Someone gave a reminder, and all the students' gazes turned towards Kaguya Shinomiya, who was walking slowly, and the crowd automatically parted, leaving a path for her to the results posted on the wall.
Kaguya Shinomiya slowly walked forward and looked at the results on the wall.
She didn't look directly at the first place name at the top, like she did in junior high. Instead, she slowly scanned from bottom to top.
This subtle action already proved one thing.
Kaguya Shinomiya wasn't as confident as she claimed. At this moment, she was already feeling scared and nervous, because this time, she truly wasn't sure she could win.
[2nd Place: A Class, Kaguya Shinomiya, Total Score: 438]
Shuchi'in Academy's exams are divided into three subjects: Social Study, Science, and Foreign Language. The maximum score for each subject is 150 points, so the total maximum score for the exam is 450 points.
In an exam of Shuchi'in Academy's difficulty, achieving a score of 438, Kaguya Shinomiya could actually be considered a genius-level student. It's worth noting that the third place only scored 412, a difference of 26 points, which could be said to be a significant lead.
It was just that when Kaguya Shinomiya saw her name appear in second place, she already realized.
She lost.
Her gaze gradually moved upwards, and what entered Kaguya Shinomiya's sight was still that familiar name, followed by an astonishing number that made her feel disbelief.
[1st Place: Class A, Asagiri Utsunomiya, Total Score: 450]
"Four hundred and fifty points... A perfect score..."
Kaguya Shinomiya could hardly believe the number she was seeing.
Getting a perfect score in Science was still within her understanding, but achieving a perfect score in Humanities and Foreign Language, which included essays and didn't have absolutely correct answer standards?
What level of monster was this?
Had anyone ever achieved a perfect score on an exam in Shuchi'in Academy's history?
It seemed like Kaguya Shinomiya only lost by twelve points, but these twelve points...
For the first time in her life, she felt a strong sense of frustration, and even began to doubt her own abilities.
Such a monster-level ability...
Could she really catch up to him?
Kaguya Shinomiya raised her right hand and gently touched her left cheek, then, under the gaze of the other students, she turned around with a normal expression and entered the classroom of Class 1-A.
A few minutes later, hearing the students' discussions in the hallway suddenly fall silent, Kaguya Shinomiya knew that person had arrived.
Footsteps came from the back of the classroom, followed by the sound of Asagiri Utsunomiya and Kotoko Iwanaga chatting casually.
"Is he coming?"
Kaguya Shinomiya sat in her seat with a very calm expression, having already prepared herself mentally for Asagiri Utsunomiya to come find her and then humiliate and mock her.
However...
Until the homeroom teacher, Miwa Ashikaga, walked into the classroom, Asagiri Utsunomiya didn't come to find her at all.
◆◇◈◇◆
After the morning classes ended, Kaguya Shinomiya couldn't hold back anymore. She voluntarily stood up and walked to Asagiri Utsunomiya, who was sitting in the corner of the classroom.
Kaguya Shinomiya didn't hear a single word of the morning's classes, her mind was completely occupied with one thing.
"You..." Kaguya Shinomiya began as she looked at Asagiri Utsunomiya sitting there, then spoke slowly, "Why didn't you come to mock me?"
Even Asagiri Utsunomiya, who usually messes around, was stunned for a moment upon hearing Kaguya Shinomiya's words, and then looked at her with an expression like she was looking at an idiot.
"Are you some kind of severe masochist? Why are you eager to be humiliated?"
"Because I lost."
"Lost... and then what?"
Hearing this, Kaguya Shinomiya frowned slightly and asked, "Don't you hate pure students? This time you won against me, and it was a complete victory. Don't you have any intention of pressing your advantage?"
"When did I ever hate pure students?"
"Then on the first day of school..."
Asagiri Utsunomiya waved his hand, interrupting Kaguya Shinomiya's words, then chuckled lightly and said, "What I detest is the so-called division between pure and impure students. Precisely because I detest this, I would never treat you as an enemy from a different faction than mine. You are simply Kaguya Shinomiya, my classmate, nothing more."