Isolation is like a child who cannot hide; everyone notices it.
"Classes A, B, and C have isolated our class."
Walking alongside Kiyotaka Ayanokouji, Suzune Horikita suddenly voiced this observation.
The commotion caused by the competition among the three classes at the swimming pool was so loud that it was impossible for anyone in Class D not to notice.
Yet, aside from Kikyou Kushida, who had a wide circle of friends, not a single person from Class D tried to join in the fun.
Was it because they didn't want to?
It was because of pride!
The other side simply hadn't invited you. If you forced your way in, you'd only end up embarrassing yourself.
"Isolated?" Ayanokouji repeated the word, his tone carrying a hint of inquiry.
Seeing the look of absolute certainty on Horikita's face, Ayanokouji pondered how to steer her thinking back on track.
Horikita was too self-centered—so self-centered that she believed whatever she saw was the absolute truth.
She always looked at things on the surface, often failing to see the reality beneath.
"If there's a competition, there should be a reward, right? What would the reward be?" Ayanokouji asked in a monotone, almost reading aloud.
Picking up on Ayanokouji's hint, Horikita understood immediately. "Points."
With this reminder, Horikita finally grasped Ayanokouji's meaning.
As Class D, with zero class points, they couldn't put up any points as a wager. Naturally, they were excluded by the other three classes.
It wasn't that they didn't want to play with you; it was simply that you didn't qualify to join.
Not to mention, Class D still hadn't come together as a group, nor had they elected a real leader.
The so-called class representative, Yousuke Hirata, was just a kind-hearted person helping everyone unilaterally.
If the other classes proposed collecting points for a class competition, most of Class D probably wouldn't even pay attention to him.
"Have you figured it out?"
Ayanokouji also saw Horikita as a tool, hoping she would grow through this.
"Yeah." But the price of Horikita's realization was despair.
Why should a Class D like this even be mentioned in the same breath as the other three classes? There wasn't a single area where they could compare.
---
Human joys and sorrows are not shared. At the open-air barbecue, Class A was filled with laughter.
After returning to the dorms to change into casual clothes, everyone gathered at the agreed-upon location to start tonight's party.
"Kanzaki, are you up to the task or not? Hurry up, hurry up," a classmate stood before the charcoal grill, arrogantly urging his own Vice Class Representative.
For fun, he even put his hands on his hips, striking a pose that said, 'I'm such a big deal.'
"Get lost. If you want to eat, grill it yourself. Ren only said I had to grill with my own hands; he didn't say I had to grill for you."
Kanzaki flipped the skewers in his hand and glared grumpily at the classmate in front of him. He had found a loophole in Ren Katsuragi's words.
Seeing that his bamboozling attempt failed with Kanzaki, the classmate decided to target Shibata. "Hmph, then I'll go find Shibata."
"Find me? It's useless to find me. I'll tell you to get lost, too." Standing right behind Kanzaki, Shibata spoke up and shattered the other party's fantasy immediately.
"Ren! Look at them!!!" The exasperated classmate called out Ren's name directly.
Hearing someone shouting his name, Ren turned his head. Seeing the scene, he merely smiled and raised the glass full of beverage in his hand to acknowledge the three of them.
Ignoring the farce over there, Ren lay back on the lounge chair, leisurely enjoying the sea breeze brushing against his face.
Although it was supposed to be a punishment for the three of them, once they arrived, no one took it seriously.
Those interested in grilling had already started, while the freeloaders waited eagerly by the grills for someone else's generosity.
As for the classmate provoking them, it was just for amusement.
"Ren, all the orders you placed are grilled. I'm done now, right?"
Kanzaki, having been frantically exploited by Ren, walked over with a dark face carrying a large platter of skewers. He placed it on the stool next to Ren and turned to leave immediately, terrified that Ren would order something else.
Picking up a grilled mid-wing from the plate and savoring it, Ren sighed with satisfaction. "This is the life."
"Indeed, this is the life," Rokusuke Koenji's voice rang out from beside Ren.
Ren wasn't surprised at all. He'd already confirmed it: Koenji was a fixed NPC who appeared whenever there was food.
Anytime, anywhere, Koenji would show up on time to mooch a meal.
Lying on a lounge chair as well, Koenji casually picked up a skewer from the plate and popped it into his mouth.
"Haruka! Try this!"
Among the group of Class A girls, Airi Sakura—whose social anxiety was gradually fading—picked up a skewer of grilled shiitake mushrooms and handed it to Haruka Hasebe.
"Airi-chan, is this really okay? This is Class A's gathering, after all." Being a Class D student dragged along by Sakura to attend Class A's party, Hasebe still felt a bit uneasy inside.
Sakura took a mushroom off the skewer and put it in Hasebe's mouth, then took a bite herself before speaking with her mouth full, "It's fine. I paid the entrance fee for Haruka!"
Sakura, even after joining Class A, had never forgotten her good friend Hasebe. For this barbecue, she'd specifically asked Ren in private if she could bring Hasebe along.
Ren, who didn't mind this at all, symbolically charged Sakura 2,000 points as an entrance fee and indicated there was no problem whatsoever.
Besides, Class A's gatherings always included Koenji, the freeloader—so one more person wouldn't matter.
With Hasebe's arrival, Class A showed no signs of exclusion. Soon, everyone was chatting together.
For Class A, as long as Ren agreed, there were no issues.
Ren stood up, stretched comfortably, and walked over to a charcoal grill to start cooking personally.
"Ren, you know how to barbecue? Can I order a grilled squid?" Yume Kobashi came up to Ren, curiously attempting to place an order.
"No problem." Taking out a skewer of squid and placing it on the grill, Ren began grilling with practiced movements.
This surprised the other classmates who were watching.
Is the boss personally grilling skewers for us?
No way! I want some too.
In no time, Ren was surrounded by people. Everyone chattered away, placing orders, all wanting to taste the difference between the skewers grilled by the Boss and those made by others.
"dragon, one roast meat!" Koenji also ran over to join in the fun.
Seeing that the newcomer was Koenji, Ren curled his lips and refused directly. "Get lost."
---
Happy times passed quickly, and the charcoal fire under the grill gradually extinguished.
The members of Class A cleaned up the trash in an orderly manner. Once everything was done, Ren looked at the crowd that hadn't dispersed, wondering what tricks they were up to now.
"Ren, about the one million points for the competition… we originally agreed that we would each contribute 25,000 points. We want to…" Kanzaki spoke on behalf of everyone, his meaning self-evident.
They just wanted to pool the one million points to reimburse Ren, who'd paid out of his own pocket.
"Nutjobs. I said a reward is a reward. Now get lost, all of you."
Even after receiving a light kick from Ren, the crowd didn't make a move, acting as if they wouldn't leave unless Ren accepted the points.
(Received 25,000 points) x 40
"See you tomorrow, Ren!"
"Let's go."
"I'm so full, I feel like I overate today."
Seeing Ren accept their points, everyone left grinning.
It seemed that everyone understood what a "collective" was.
----
Note: I haven't been able to upload chapters because I didn't have internet.