Chapter 74: The Expellee of Class D, Hirata Yosuke! / I Reported Myself!

The homeroom period ended.

Since the exam results were largely expected, the teachers of each class dismissed the students for free time once the announcements were finished. As for the conclusion of this month's Special Exam and the notice for next month's, those were fixed to occur on the 1st of the following month.

However, after class, several students chose to head to the small blackboard on the first floor of the teaching building, where the Student Council had already updated the data. For students of various classes to gather here right after homeroom carried significant weight.

"Trash Class D!" Ryuen Kakeru was the first to arrive. He noticed that while Classes A, B, and C all received +100 Class Points (CP), Class D had... changed from 0 to 30.

This meant that even though everyone had access to the old questions and their answers, someone in Class D was still dragging the class down.

It was essentially an open-book test—actually, even more forgiving than one—yet they still failed to maximize the reward.

"Class D is indeed pathetic," Katsuragi Kohei of Class A arrived shortly after.

"However, Ryuen, you should be happy. The Student Council's punishment has ended, rather than being extended to deduct more points now."

"You bastard, Katsuragi!" Ryuen didn't come alone; he was accompanied by Albert and Ishizaki Daichi. It was Ishizaki, the former delinquent, who spoke up in anger.

If Katsuragi hadn't led the report last month, and if Class A hadn't continuously reported Class C's fighting to the Student Council, would Class C have ever fallen to 0 points?

Ryuen's purpose for coming here was simple:

All students in Classes A, B, and C received the maximum +100 CP reward. This meant that in this specific Special Exam, the performance of the top three classes was equal. Even as Class C, they weren't entirely inferior to A and B. He believed the proud students of Class A would definitely show up, allowing him to issue a declaration of war.

After all, though the first month's Special Exam had ground Class C into the dirt, climbing up from 0 and succeeding was not only a challenge but also incredibly entertaining. It offered a certain "thrill of the underdog's counterattack." He was prepared to provoke Class A to his heart's content.

Instead, Katsuragi went straight for the sore spot.

Looking at the angry Ishizaki, Ryuen simply raised his left hand, and Ishizaki immediately shut his mouth. Ryuen then smiled mockingly.

"Then I should congratulate you all as well. In this exam, you managed to defend your position as Class A—within a margin of 50 points."

With the exam over, Class A's points sat at 1055, while Class B was at 1011. The gap was indeed less than 50 points. If the next Special Exam offered a reward of more than 50 points, Class A could very well be overtaken by Class B.

For Class A, this was a dire situation. If they fell to Class B, it would be a total disgrace. Furthermore, Class B was nipping at their heels so closely that Class A had even needed Sakayanagi Arisu to attempt a "mutual destruction" tactic against President Horikita Manabu's weakness just to secure a chance in the next Student Council election.

Meanwhile, Class B's Hikigaya Hachiman had already secured a position and the President's approval.

The pressure was immense.

The students present became visibly unsettled.

"Heh, look at you all, so easily provoked," Ryuen laughed.

"You! Haven't you had enough of being reported!?" Yahiko Totsuka, a loyal follower of Katsuragi, stepped forward. As a proud member of Class A, he was infuriated by Ryuen's provocations.

"The gap with Class B is less than 50 points now, but we will shine in the next exam and leave them far behind—"

"Dreaming?" Ryuen remained unfazed. "Besides, all you can do is report things. You Class A students aren't all that."

"Class D's points dropping from 50 to 30... that was your handiwork, wasn't it, Ryuen?" Katsuragi didn't stop Yahiko, as he also wanted to widen the gap with Class B.

"In an exam that followed such 'established rules,' you still went and did unnecessary things. I suggest you watch yourself."

"You have quite a record," Katsuragi continued. "As the Secretary of the Student Council, I will be monitoring you strictly."

"Monitoring? So you're saying you have no evidence. Besides, does Class D really need someone to frame them?" Ryuen sneered.

"While there were no deductions for conduct this month, there are still behaviors that warrant point loss."

Katsuragi went silent. Ryuen was telling the truth.

Class D had earned 50 points from the exam, but failed to get the full 100.

Why? Because a student had tried to take an upskirt photo of a girl and was caught on the spot.

The behavior was so egregious that the Student Council directly deducted 20 points from the class as punishment.

This was clearly Ryuen's setup—the person who reported it was a Class C student. It was a classic "fishing" sting operation.

As a member of the Student Council, Hikigaya knew that beyond the school's Special Exams, the Council had the authority to intervene in disciplinary matters.

Usually, this involved punishing students for poor conduct, which could, in severe cases, affect class points.

Katsuragi had wondered if some classes might have students who constantly dragged the group down with point deductions.

The school clearly wouldn't handle these students directly. So, was it possible the school expected these classes to expel such problematic students when necessary? For example, through an "Expulsion Exam" based on character or class contribution?

It was a cruel thought, but for the sake of the whole, such a sacrifice might be necessary. Making that choice was a lesson in itself.

While Classes A and C were busy bickering, Class D was noticeably absent. As a member of Class B, Hikigaya stayed in his classroom in a relaxed mood.

The moment Hoshinomiya-sensei announced Class D only got 50 points, he knew the canon events were unfolding: Someone was facing expulsion because their score was below the passing line.

In the original story, it was Sudo Ken, and Ayanokouji and Horikita teamed up to spend 100,000 points to "buy" the single point Sudo lacked to pass. Because no one was expelled, Class D got the full 100 CP reward.

However, in this timeline, Horikita Suzune was not standing with Ayanokouji.

Furthermore, would Ayanokouji really choose to spend his own points to save Sudo like in the original? Hikigaya doubted it.

As someone who had read the series, he knew Ayanokouji was a cold-hearted pragmatist.

Since there hadn't been a physical Special Exam yet, Sudo's value hadn't been proven.

A Sudo who failed even an "open-book" memorization test might only serve one purpose for Ayanokouji: to test whether expulsions resulted in a continued drop to 0 points or if points could go negative. If they stayed at 0, Ayanokouji might use the early Special Exams to purge everyone dragging the class down, turning a "defective" Class D into a refined tool capable of reaching Class A.

Still, Hikigaya decided to wait. He knew one person would eventually come knocking. That person could not stand the thought of anyone in Class D being expelled. If it only took 100,000 or 200,000 points to stop an expulsion, he would go around borrowing from everyone to cover the debt himself.

That person was Hirata Yosuke.

Hikigaya saw a call coming in from Karuizawa Kei. He put on his headphones and began to listen.

For Class D, today was going to be "different."

"Homeroom is over, but I still have something to say." Horikita Suzune stood at the podium. Because she had "sold" votes to Hikigaya previously, she had gained some influence in the class; at least people felt following her led to getting private points.

"First, Ike Kanji, your voyeuristic behavior has had a massive negative impact on our class."

"I told you, I was just checking the camera, I didn't actually take anything... I was set up by Class C!" Ike looked helpless, scratching his head.

"How could I be caught and reported before I even succeeded?"

Class D only got 50 points from the exam because there were two failures, failing the "zero expulsions" condition. The -20 point penalty was because of Ike's disciplinary case. The girls, who had already been disgusted by the boys making "physique rankings" last month, were even more revolted now.

"Trying to sneak photos now? I can't imagine what you'd do during swim class—installing cameras in the girls' lockers!?" The girls' reaction was fierce.

"It was Ike's fault, don't lump all us guys together!" some boys shouted back, trying to distance themselves to avoid losing favor with the girls.

"Enough!" Suddenly, Hirata Yosuke, the pale-green-haired boy everyone trusted, snapped. The sheer volume of his voice startled everyone, including Chabashira Sae.

It was hard to imagine the gentle Hirata sounding so enraged.

"I'm sorry," Hirata quickly regained control of his emotions.

"I mean to say... isn't the most important thing right now that our class is about to have two students expelled?"

"We all gathered at this school together. I believe it's fate. We should have a good school life together, unite as Class D for Special Exams, and climb to the top. I believe no one should be expelled."

He truly cared about the class members.

The potential expellees were Yamauchi Haruki—a selfish, arrogant boaster—and the short-tempered Sudo Ken.

Neither was popular, so their departure didn't seem like a loss to many. But a sense of "today him, tomorrow me" hung over the class.

"Exactly! Why are your scores all so high? If the average was lower, I wouldn't have failed!" Yamauchi started yelling.

"Also, I'm reporting everyone! Everyone cheated! We all got the questions before the exam and just memorized them. The questions were leaked, so it's cheating!

I demand a retake! You can't just expel me! I won't accept it!" Yamauchi's desperate attempt to drag everyone down with him instantly incensed the entire class.

Even Kushida Kikyo was stunned.

While she knew Yamauchi's idiocy wouldn't change the school's stance (since the whole school technically "cheated"), his vocal outburst put her, the person who distributed the papers, in the line of fire.

"I don't want to be expelled either... I just joined the basketball club, and the captain said I'd be a regular soon!" Sudo said frantically.

"My physical ability is top-tier; why does everything have to be about studying? Aren't there special admissions for athletes?"

It was clear he didn't want to go back to his "trash" parents. He wanted a fresh start.

"Don't worry, Sudo-kun," Hirata offered a comforting smile.

"And Yamauchi-kun, you don't need to worry either. You won't be expelled."

Hirata walked toward Chabashira. "I actually cheated during this exam. I obtained the questions beforehand. Therefore, I cheated throughout the entire process. I suggest that my scores for all subjects be voided and set to 0."

The room went silent.

Hirata Yosuke... what are you talking about?

Everyone knew about the leaked papers. By claiming he "cheated" and setting his score to 0, he would drastically lower the class average. Since the passing line was defined as Average/2, lowering the average would lower the threshold, potentially saving the failures.

Some students looked at him in shock. Others, however, began to analyze the situation.

Hirata had scored 51 points in every subject. Why 51? Because even if everyone else got 100, the average would be 100, and the passing line would be 50. Hirata had purposely controlled his score to be at the safest possible low point to keep the passing line down for others.

But the "100 CP reward" required a class average of 60 or above. By scoring 51, Hirata had already prioritized "saving the weak" over the "class's gain."

He was a "Saint" who was willing to sacrifice the class's upward mobility to maintain the current status quo.

"Even if you report yourself for cheating and set your score to 0, it's not enough," Horikita Suzune spoke from the podium.

She finally understood why Hikigaya viewed Hirata as a "bomb." He was a person who lacked basic judgment of value.

"Your scores were 51. By clearing them to 0, you could save Sudo, who is only 1 point short. But Yamauchi is 3 points short of the passing line. Even with your score at 0, Yamauchi would still be expelled."

She looked at Hirata with cold eyes.

"Are you really choosing to sacrifice yourself? You are infinitely more valuable to Class D than Sudo or Yamauchi. And even if you were willing, the rest of the class wouldn't be."

"That's right!" students who had been helped by Hirata stood up.

"This is Yamauchi and Sudo's fault! Everyone else got high scores, why couldn't they!?"

"They deserve it! Hirata, why are you sacrificing yourself for them!?"

"They aren't worth it!"

The sentiment was clear: If Hirata left, but the "trash" like Yamauchi stayed—especially a guy like Yamauchi who just tried to rat out the whole class—it would lead to an even more nightmare-ish future for Class D.

The students realized that having "dead weight" in the class was a liability they could no longer ignore.

Important announcement

Hello everyone!

Thank you as always for your support!

There are 2 new Fanfictions!

Emiya Shirou will change the fake Holy Grail War

A false Holy Grail War was held in Snowfield City.

Consequently, the Noble Phantasms of Gilgamesh and Enkidu flew wildly like rain. The Pale Rider rapidly infected the entire city. The Avenger Heracles surged with overflowing black mud. Even the Zealot, who possessed the eighteen secret techniques of the Hassans, had to struggle just to survive in the cracks between them.

A battlefield where gods fight is exactly like this; a duel between a human and a Heroic Spirit is, after all, a distant and irrelevant myth.

That is, if the silhouette of a certain red-haired "faker" young man hadn't happened to—randomly, inadvertently, and accidentally—pass by this world's counterfeit Holy Grail War.

COTE: Katsuragi Keima's battle of wits in love

The youth, Katsuragi Keima, was holding his game console, posting walkthroughs for various galge (dating sims) across different forums.

At that very moment, Katsuragi Keima received a new message.

[To the Capturing God]

[I've heard the rumors that you can capture any girl, regardless of who she is. While I find it unlikely, if it is true, there are many girls waiting for your capture. (This will be a super-high difficulty galge unlike anything you have ever experienced.)]

"What's this? An email full of such provocative undertones... who does he think I am? The God does not run away!"

Katsuragi Keima pressed the confirmation button.

Welcome to the Classroom of the Elite!

(Katsuragi Keima is the protagonist of The World God Only Know)