Classroom of the Elite: Alter - Self-Test

"Good morning, everyone," greeted Chabashira-sensei, with her usual poker face.

Standing behind the podium, Chabashira-sensei scanned the entire class.

"Hehhh... Look at you, sitting up straight with such serious expressions. You're already acting like students befitting of Class A." Chabashira-sensei was praising us, but her sarcastic tone made it all clear that we were actually being mocked.

"The higher-ups were really shocked when I reported what happened yesterday, you know? If any of the other class advisers find out about you guys, they would surely become wary." Chabashira-sensei's tone suddenly dropped. "I'm also under investigation right now. As you can see, there's always the possibility that I willingly shared that information with you guys. Such actions are strictly against the rules and could get me fired on the spot. However, once they go through all of the evidence, I'm sure we'll be fine."

Evidence, huh? I'm guessing it's the security cameras that are scattered around the classroom walls. They're not especially hidden, but I don't think everyone's noticed them yet.

"Sensei." Hirata raised his hand.

"Yes, Hirata?" Chabashira-sensei gave him a side glance.

"Is it alright for you to tell us these things?" asked Hirata.

"Of course. I wouldn't make the careless mistake of sharing confidential information, even if it's for my own class's benefit. At the end of the day, rules are rules." Chabashira-sensei answered smoothly.

"Well, with that being said, I have another thing to clear up." With her hands plastered on the podium, Chabashira-sensei looked like quite an authoritative figure. "There was one detail about the S-System that I left out yesterday... No, it's more appropriate to say that I completely lied about it."

The stiff look on my classmates' faces turned stiffer.

"There's actually another way to earn class points apart from special exams." Chabashira-sensei said.

"-?!" The entire class reacted a bit violently, but they didn't utter any words. It only took a second before they calmed down again.

"What's with those looks? The special exams are already the icing on the cake. This one's nothing revolutionary or unique, really." Chabashira-sensei commented with a smirk. "Like any normal high school, we will be having midterms and final exams. Depending on your performance, you can earn up to 100 class points."

"That's quite a lot..." Some of my classmates murmured.

"Don't get too happy now. If you score high on your test, that's all fine and dandy, but should any of you fail... then that student will immediately be expelled." Chabashira-sensei didn't smile this time.

Does that mean she's actually concerned about us getting expelled? But wasn't she mocking us just a little while ago? I can't understand her at all...

"Expelled?!" With a bombshell of that level, my classmates finally exploded.

"T-That's ridiculous!" Yamauchi and his friends were the ones making the loudest ruckus.

"What's there to panic about? Remember that this is only your second day in school. The teachers who will follow me after homeroom will only give you the course outlines for their subjects. It's not like you've missed entire lessons already, right? If, say, Ayanokouji didn't buy the information on the S-System, then I'm sure that the especially undisciplined defects in this class will neglect their academic duties and slack off. If that were the case, panicking would be completely justified. Stop acting like children when you already have an overwhelming advantage," Chabashira-sensei elaborated.

That explanation calmed most of them down. If they listened to class discussions from the very start, getting high scores on the exams wouldn't be too hard with a little studying.

"That's all for now. I'll be back later for our Japanese History class. Since it almost took me a whole period to explain the S-System yesterday, I suppose I'll give you some time to mingle with each other. Goodbye." Chabashira-sensei, carrying her usual clipboard, walked out of the classroom and left us to our own devices.

Not long after, Hirata stood up. I envy him for having no hesitation in doing such a thing.

"Everyone, can I have your attention for a bit?" called Hirata. "Before we discuss anything regarding the S-System, is it alright if we heed Chabashira-sensei's suggestion? I really would like to get to know everyone."

He probably looked like a hero, especially to those who can't express themselves well.

I've already memorized all thirty-nine of my classmates' names and faces. After subtly checking every name on each seat, all I had to do was wait for the owners to arrive and match the faces.

"Why not~?!" said Karuizawa.

"I'm in!" followed Shinohara.

Almost everyone agreed to the idea. I looked towards the left-most side of the room only to see Sudou's uninterested look. Meanwhile, my neighbor, Horikita, also seemed like she couldn't care less.

Just like how I anticipated it. It's a good thing that I sent a text to Hirata and Kushida in advance.

"Then, I'll go first. My name's Hirata Yousuke. Back in junior high, a lot of people called me Yousuke, so feel free to use my first name. I guess my hobby is sports in general, but I especially like soccer. I'm planning on playing soccer here, too. Nice to meet you, everyone," said Hirata.

With that effortless self-introduction, Hirata's popularity must've increased by two or four times within the class.

"Well then, I'd like everyone to introduce themselves, starting from the front. Is that okay?" asked Hirata.

After that, my classmates introduced themselves one by one. This may not be the best method to look for actual information about them, but it gave me a good glimpse of their personalities.

"I think it's my turn now," Kushida said timidly.

Everyone cheered. That adorable appearance charmed half of the class's boys. Even my heart started to race.

Kushida stood up, faced everyone, and then opened her mouth.

"My name is Kushida Kikyou. None of my friends from junior high made it to this school, so I'm alone here. I'd like to get to know all of your names and faces right away and become friends as soon as possible!" said Kushida.

While most of the students had only said a few words of introduction, Kushida continued to talk.

"My first goal is to become friends with everyone. So, after we're finished with introductions, I'd love for you to share your contact information with me!" She continued with a big smile on her face.

"So, after school or during vacations, I want to make all sorts of memories with a lot of people. Please feel free to invite me to lots and lots of events! Anyway, I've talked for a long time, so I'll end my introduction here." Kushida finished off with her angelic aura emanating across the room.

The way she said her last sentence felt like she knew I was critiquing everyone's introductions. It made me feel slightly uncomfortable.

After everyone's applause came to a halt, the introductions continued. A short while passed by and it was finally his turn.

"Excuse me, can you introduce yourself?" Hirata addressed the boy in the center seat of the room.

It was Kouenji.

"Hmph, fine." He smirked like an aristocrat, displaying his impudent attitude.

Kouenji didn't stand up. He merely shifted his crossed legs before introducing himself.

"My name is Kouenji Rokusuke. As the sole male heir to the Kouenji conglomerate group, I will soon be tasked with carrying Japan into the future. I sincerely look forward to making your acquaintance, ladies." He aimed his introduction solely at the opposite sex, rather than the entire class.

While some of them admired his wealth, a lot regarded him as nothing but a weirdo.

"Starting today, I will mercilessly punish anyone who makes me uncomfortable. Please exercise proper precaution so that you may avoid that." Kouenji finished with a proud grin.

"Um, Kouenji-kun. What exactly do you mean when you say 'anyone who makes me uncomfortable'?" asked Hirata, who looked uneasy at the word "punish".

"I meant exactly what I said. If asked to give an example, well... I would say I hate ugly things, for instance. So, if I saw something ugly, I would do just as I said," replied Kouenji, flipping his long flowing bangs with a fwish!

He sure left an impression.

Well, half of the class still needs to go. We should move forward. That's probably what everyone was thinking.

After more introductions from my other classmates, it was finally my turn...

"Ayanokouji-kun, go for it!" cheered Kushida.

A lot of the girls seemed rather interested, which surprised me to some degree. I've simulated this situation inside my mind a couple of million times already. 99.999% of those simulations ended in absolute disaster. But then again, the remaining 0.001% is just wishful thinking on my part. It's practically a guaranteed catastrophe.

Whatever... I can't really do anything at this point, can I? I stood upon and faced my classmates.

"My name is Ayanokouji Kiyotaka. I hope you haven't forgotten my name yet." I introduced myself in a joke-like manner.

Everyone simply stared at me...

Crap... As I thought, it was a blunder. None of my classmates laughed. I just want to die in a hole right now...

"There's no way we'll forget your name, Ayanokouji-kun. You're already dubbed as Class D's savior." Hirata broke the painful silence.

I'm grateful... Thank you, Hirata. But why did they take my words seriously? It was supposed to be a joke. It was my tone, wasn't it? Sigh... This is one of those moments where I wished my natural tone was that of someone like Ike.

But this is a do-or-die situation. If I retreat with a boring backup plan, it won't end well for me.

"You're my friend, Hirata. It would make me cry if even you forgot my name," I tried to crack a joke once more— this time, with a vibrant and goofy ring to it.

"Isn't that cruel, Hirata?!" Yamauchi protested with a comedic expression.

I forcefully improved my tone. It certainly sounded dynamic enough. Yamauchi, who probably got my joke, followed up.

"Hahaha! What the heck?" Satou laughed along with some other girls.

"T-That won't happen, I swear!" Hirata responded in a panic.

It caused a chain reaction which made the majority of my classmates laugh out loud.

"I was kidding." I shot back with my usual monotone while segueing towards the rest of my self-introduction. "I liked to read books when I was a kid. And while I've never played any sport, I think I'm pretty okay when it comes to running. I'm looking forward to getting to know you all."

It was a mandatory move to say something about myself. Given my demeanor, I'd say that those two things are common enough to be considered the safest option.

"You dodged a bullet," Horikita commented as I sat.

"More like a natural disaster..." I replied before hurling her comment back at her. "It's your turn now, Horikita. You won't be forced to do anything, but I recommend you take this chance."

I probably sounded like someone encouraging his friend, but underneath my monotonous, boring tone... was a threat. If Horikita can sense it, she could either obey or disobey.

The cold sweat forming on Horikita's silky white face indicated that she did... Horikita looked very angry, glaring at me like a mother bear inside its hibernation nest, and I was an intruder.

"Fine... But remember, you owe me this moment, Ayanokouji-kun. I'll collect my debt later." Horikita said, filled with indignation.

Once again, Horikita didn't disappoint me. She didn't obey or disobey. She disregarded the whole threat and made it a deal instead. With that, Horikita Suzune stood up to introduce herself in front of the class.