Calculating based on 40 people per class, each person is issued 100,000 points per month, which equals 100,000 yen.
One class totals 4 million, four classes make 16 million, and three grades combined reach 48 million.
Accumulated over three years, the total expenditure exceeds 1.7 billion yen!
Even with financial support from government-enterprise cooperation, Koudo Ikusei could not possibly afford such extravagant spending.
If this were a top university that only recruited geniuses, spending this much might be understandable.
But…
Do I deserve this?
Hachiman Hikigaya asked himself, and the answer was no!
Do any of you deserve it?
Hachiman scanned the entire Class D.
It was currently free time.
Yousuke Hirata continued hosting the self-introductions, paying special attention to the marginalized students. Even the fiery red-haired Ken Sudou was no exception. Even when Sudou pointed and cursed at him, Hirata didn't give up, still using great patience to persuade him.
Kikyou Kushida seemed to be fulfilling her declaration from the self-introductions—"I want to be friends with everyone"—by exchanging contact information with classmates one by one.
To avoid being targeted by the ever-gentle Hirata, Hachiman quietly slipped out of the classroom.
However, as soon as he stepped out, someone followed right behind him…
"I refuse."
"There is no need to make friends."
Suzune Horikita first ruthlessly rejected Kikyou Kushida's "friend invitation" in public, then left under the bewildered gazes of the crowd.
Hachiman noticed that the eyebrows on Kushida's angelic face were twitching furiously. However, her expression management was excellent, and she managed to restrain herself.
**First Year, First Semester: 005 – Theft and Secret Photography**
Hachiman Hikigaya and Suzune Horikita left the classroom one after the other, but they didn't exchange any words.
Hachiman wasn't conceited enough to think she was following him.
Even now, the two of them were walking in the same direction.
Hachiman still didn't entertain any unnecessary thoughts.
They exited the school building.
The two continued moving in the same direction… Hachiman didn't care, but Suzune Horikita couldn't hold back anymore.
"Why are you following me?"
"First ask if it's true, then ask why."
Hachiman pointed at the school supermarket ahead and explained concisely, "I plan to buy some daily necessities."
…
Suzune Horikita froze momentarily and said nothing more.
Clearly, she was doing the same thing.
The rest of the way was silent.
Suzune Horikita entered the women's products section, and the two parted ways.
Hachiman wasn't in a hurry to shop; instead, he wandered around, observing the variety of goods.
As a school supermarket, its scale could even rival external commercial supermarkets.
It covered all daily necessities, and even digital cameras, laptop computers, and handheld gaming consoles were readily available.
Such high consumption levels far exceeded the allowance standards of ordinary high-school students.
But Koudo Ikusei's S system allows payment using points.
It was practically encouraging students to work hard and accumulate personal points… Hachiman narrowed his eyes, vaguely smelling a conspiracy.
Furthermore, what was most noteworthy was that the supermarket also had a free section.
Was it providing minimum living standards for students who ran out of points?
It was hard to imagine the school being so lenient toward prodigies who could use up 100,000 points in one month.
Recalling Sae Chabashira's explanation of the S system—"The school will issue a certain amount of points to the terminal every month"—she never said that "certain amount" was a fixed 100,000!
"This is a school where meritocracy reigns supreme." So the question is, how is merit judged?
The answer is competition.
He just didn't know if it was individual competition, class competition, or both!
Ah, this is so troublesome… Hachiman sighed helplessly.
But there was nothing to complain about.
He had never believed in free lunches from the start.
All in all, he should start saving points.
Hachiman decisively took items from the free section.
Towels, toothbrushes, shampoo… Compared to the big-name products that required points, the free section was filled entirely with generic, unheard-of brands.
Hachiman didn't care about branded goods anyway, nor did he need to worry about the quality of the products.
Anything allowed to be sold in this school must at least be safe enough.
After completing the "purchase"—oh, wait, the free acquisition—of basic daily necessities,
Hachiman headed to the beverage section; he needed to buy coffee.
Glancing at the assorted instant coffee packets in the free section, Hachiman dismissed them disdainfully.
They were all vulgar things without soul… "Found it!"
In a prominent spot on the shelf, he found the beloved MAX Coffee.
Hachiman waved his hand grandly and bought two packs.
Although it hurt his wallet a bit, MAX Coffee, you are absolutely worth it!
Satisfied, Hachiman was about to leave.
His peripheral vision suddenly caught two suspicious figures…
One had long purple hair tied in a side ponytail, with slender legs paired with short socks, highlighting the generous expanse of white skin in between. She had sharp eyes, cautiously scanning the surroundings, and one hand carefully reached toward the freezer labeled as the alcohol section.
The other was an exceptionally petite silver-haired girl. Her white stockings and suspenders gave her a look that was pure yet somewhat seductive, and the paleness of her skin exceeded the range of a normal healthy person. The short cane she used to support herself indicated her physical weakness.
Minors are prohibited from buying alcoholic beverages… Is that person trying to steal?
Hachiman observed secretly.
He saw the silver-haired girl quietly pick up her phone, using the shelf as cover, and the camera light turned on.
Is she filming criminal evidence… What a nasty character.
As a righteous, law-abiding citizen, stopping a crime is perfectly reasonable.
But judging by the playful smile on the silver-haired girl's face, her motives looked impure no matter how he looked at it.
If the genders were reversed, it would easily lead to some strange plotlines… "You wouldn't want anyone to find out you were stealing, right?"
"I have dirt on you, so be a good girl and obey me."
"Heh heh heh~"
Excluding the low probability of a yuri development, the silver-haired girl would most likely use this as leverage to manipulate the purple-haired girl, perhaps even controlling her for her entire three years of high school!
If you do something wrong, you must accept the punishment.
Hachiman originally had no intention of interfering.
However, when his gaze fell upon the bright hair clip on the purple-haired girl's head, memories from the depths of his mind surged out uncontrollably!
That was during the winter break of his second year of junior high… To prepare a birthday gift for his sister, Hachiman falsified his age and got a job at an accessory shop.
The shop owner brought in a batch of celebrity merchandise.
Hachiman couldn't understand how a tiny hair clip, simply because it was a celebrity replica, could sell for twelve thousand yen!
At that time, a pair of sisters came into the shop, and the younger sister immediately fell in love with this expensive hair clip.
The older sister was very troubled; it was obvious she was short on cash.
But the younger sister was persistent, crying and throwing a fit because she wanted it.
Hachiman felt a pang of emotion; if Komachi desired something like this, he would definitely buy it for her, no matter the cost!
Of course, Komachi wouldn't be so spoiled.
Conclusion: Komachi truly is the cutest sister in the world!
Under her sister's persistent nagging, the older sister finally decided to take a risk and stole the hair clip from the shop.
Hachiman was shocked!
This person's love for her sister was actually greater than his own!
Out of sympathy for a fellow sister-complex sufferer, Hachiman did not catch the older sister on the spot.
Considering there were many people in the shop at the time, if the theft were exposed, with so many gossiping mouths, the older sister's life would probably be ruined!
Hachiman pretended not to see it, planning to negotiate with the girl privately later to retrieve the stolen hair clip.
As a result, the incident was exposed, and the shop manager flew into a rage, threatening to send the thief to the police station!
Hachiman successfully persuaded the shop manager to drop the matter in exchange for forfeiting "one month's part-time wages," intending to minimize the incident.
However, he never expected that the next day, a sick mother would drag her daughter into the shop and forcibly press her daughter's head down to apologize on her knees in front of everyone!
Facing the pointing fingers of passersby, the daughter's eyes were vacant, her self-esteem shattered.
It is inherently understandable for parents to educate a child who has made a mistake.
But this method was clearly excessive.
After all, a politician in Japan who embezzled billions only had to say "Hontou ni gomen nasai" (I'm truly sorry) and bow in front of the media to settle the matter.
From a legal standpoint, a minor stealing something only warrants criticism and education.
Even Hachiman Hikigaya, whose status in the family was one notch below "Chimera" (the family cat), only got a caning behind closed doors when his dad caught him stealing allowance money (which was actually his kept New Year's money).
There was absolutely no need to make it known to everyone.
The memory ended there.
"Hoo~"
Hachiman took a deep breath; he decided to do something.
"Um…"
"Excuse me!"
Hachiman Hikigaya's sudden loud exclamation drew the attention of many passersby.
This startled the purple-haired girl, who was about to shove the beer into her pocket, causing her hand to shake, and she quickly put it back.
(End of Chapter 5 excerpt)