Classroom of the Elite, Kusuo Saiki

Watching their interaction, a thought began to form in Kusuo Saiki's mind.

He first turned on the favorability display and glanced at the favorability ratings of Kikyo Kushida towards the other people around her. They were mostly around fifty, while her favorability rating towards the trio of idiots was only slightly over forty.

However, throughout the entire process, Kikyo Kushida never showed any disgust, always wearing a kind smile on her face without revealing any flaws.

That's really impressive.

With that thought in mind, Kusuo Saiki then changed the target on the monitor; the three idiots' affection level for Kikyo Kushida had exceeded eighty.

The difference in attitude seems quite significant.

However, according to Saiki Kusuo's observation, the other students in the class generally had a high level of affection for Kushida Kikyo, with most of them having a level of over 70.

Apart from the arrogant Horikita Suzune and the indiscriminate Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, everyone else has a very good relationship with Kushida Kikyo. The latter should also have a certain influence in the class, so perhaps we can 'take advantage' of Kushida Kikyo a little.

Kusuo Saiki didn't want to tell Kikyo Kushida about the matter himself, as he didn't want to cause himself any more trouble. So he used his telepathic ability, which allowed him to transmit one person's inner thoughts to another's mind, as if he were hearing the other person speak.

Meanwhile, Kusuo Saiki transmitted the thoughts of the older students to Kikyo Kushida, which was as if she had overheard the conversation of the people next to her.

"Hey?"

Upon hearing the voice, Kikyo Kushida turned around with some confusion, her gaze searching through the crowd for a while before finally settling on several older students. She then quickly stepped forward.

"Senior, were you just talking about the surprise exam...?"

After seeing Kikyo Kushida step forward to inquire about the situation, Kusuo Saiki believed that he had achieved his goal.

Given Kikyo Kushida's personality and abilities, she should be able to obtain relevant information from these upperclassmen boys very quickly.

Kusuo Saiki then left the cafeteria and went to the library again. After using his telepathic abilities to confirm that Hiyori Shiina was not there, he quickly returned the book he had borrowed the day before. Afterward, he took out another book recommended by Hiyori Shiina from the bookshelf. Fortunately, because they were chatting on his phone at the time, Kusuo Saiki was not spoiled and did indeed become somewhat interested in these novels.

To avoid any possibility of spoilers, Kusuo Saiki left the library as quickly as possible and returned to his dormitory, intending to read some books during his lunch break and enjoy this rare moment of private time.

'I have to admit, the novel Shiina recommended was indeed quite good.'

"Although it's quite niche, the suspense built up well from start to finish. It seems none of the bookstores near my house carry these books."

'I'll watch the rest all at once when I get back.'

Kusuo Saiki glanced at the time; the lunch break was almost over. He then closed his book and returned to the classroom.

Chapter Sixteen: Kikyo Kushida, the Social Superpowerer

Before long, Kusuo Saiki returned to the classroom. As soon as he entered, he saw several classmates gathered together, seemingly discussing something.

And Kikyo Kushida was standing in the middle of them.

"Kushida-san, are you telling the truth?"

With a somewhat surprised expression, Hirata Yosuke asked,

"Is there a surprise exam next week?"

"When I was having lunch, I overheard some senior students discussing this. Every freshman class has a surprise exam shortly after enrollment, and it's related to the class's grading points!"

Kikyo Kushida nodded very seriously, and then told everyone the information she had heard from the upperclassmen.

'As expected of Kushida. Theoretically, upperclassmen are forbidden from proactively revealing information to freshmen, yet she managed to get all this information out of them.'

Kusuo Saiki muttered to himself as he slowly approached the crowd.

'Although I already knew all this, it might be too conspicuous for me to stay alone nearby; it's better to blend in with the crowd.'

He blended into the crowd almost silently, and no one around him noticed his presence.

Is this for real?

Are there going to be crash tests so shortly after the start of the school year?

[Are exam scores related to class points? Will they also affect our regular points? Why didn't the teacher say this beforehand?]

Everyone's psychological state is different; some are surprised, while others are flustered.

Kusuo Saiki turned his head slightly to look at the corner of the classroom. Suzune Horikita was sitting in her seat, not intending to join in the conversation, but it was clear that she had also heard what the others were saying.

[It's just a surprise exam, yet they're so panicked. As a government-funded high school, anyone with a brain knows they can't possibly give students unlimited amounts of money every month. To panic over a single exam is hopeless.]

Horikita Suzune displayed disdain for others both in her heart and in her actions.

"Then I really need to catch up on my studies during this time..."

After listening to Kikyo Kushida's words, Kanji Ike looked somewhat troubled.

"Luckily, it's only been a few days since school started. I missed the first few classes... I should have enough time to catch up..."

"It's just an exam, right? It's only been a few days since school started, so it probably won't be anything too difficult!"

Ken Sudo, standing to the side, seemed completely unconcerned.

'However, I've heard that there will be quite a few questions that are beyond the syllabus.'

Kusuo Saiki had already heard more about the first exam from the older students. He knew that the exam included many questions that were beyond the syllabus, and even students who listened attentively in class every day might not be able to answer them. Moreover, these questions accounted for a significant portion of the score.

Without exceptional academic ability, it is almost impossible for an average student to achieve a high score—unless they know the exam questions in advance.

"According to what those people said earlier, lower-grade students can buy exam papers from upper-grade students. The questions seem to be similar every year, so if you can buy the previous year's papers and study in advance, you should be able to get a very high score."

Kusuo Saiki thought this to himself, and he had no intention of telling anyone else about it.

At that moment, Kikyo Kushida spoke up and continued:

"I also heard that this exam will have a lot of questions that are beyond the syllabus, and it will be very difficult to answer them... But I heard from the seniors that you can buy the previous year's exam questions! The questions for the freshman exam are basically the same every year!"

"Is this actually possible?"

Hirata Yosuke was somewhat surprised, and gently stroked his chin with his fingers.

"As Mr. Chabashira said before, everything in this school can be bought... and buying last year's exam questions doesn't count as cheating at all."

"But do you think it's necessary to buy it?"

Another girl asked.

Her long, honey-colored hair reached her waist, her skin had a slight tan, but her legs under her short skirt were very fair. She had delicate features, and her clear eyes shone with vitality.

Kusuo Saiki remembered her name: Megumi Karuizawa.

Karuizawa Kei is arguably one of the most active students in Class D since the start of the school year. She seems to have a bit of a delinquent vibe, but she is also very popular and has become friends with almost all the girls without even realizing it.

"After all, although the exam questions are the same every year, we can't be sure what this year's exam questions will be like!"

Karuizawa Kei said with a serious expression.

"And how many points are needed to purchase the test questions?"

"I'm sorry, I was in too much of a rush at the time and didn't have time to ask."

Kikyo Kushida immediately spoke up.

The second-grader said he wanted 50,000 points, but I don't think it's worth that many points, and I'm not planning to pay that many points all by myself!

Kusuo Saiki was able to hear Kikyo Kushida's thoughts. Kikyo Kushida spoke these things not for the sake of the class, but for her own sake.

Her idea was actually very simple: she didn't want her points to be affected by others and wanted to increase her points as much as possible. At the same time, she didn't plan to use her points to buy test papers in this situation, as it would be best if the whole class could share the cost equally.

"I think it's best to buy a copy of the exam paper from two years ago, just to be on the safe side. After all, if what Kushida-kun said is true, that grades are related to points, then we should try to get as many points as possible... Kushida-kun, are you still able to contact that senior from before? If so, could you please ask him how much the exam paper costs?"

"Okay, I also kept that senior's contact information."

Kikyo Kushida smiled and nodded, but after speaking, she extended her slender finger and gently touched her lips.

"However, I don't think it's a good idea for me to go alone, since I'm not good at bargaining with people... If possible, could you have another guy come with me?"

Upon hearing Kikyo Kushida's words, most of the boys present immediately became excited.

Pick me!

Can people still speak with one voice?

Kusuo Saiki complained.

Chapter Seventeen: Kusuo Saiki, you're the next choice!

Seeing that the matter was almost resolved, Kusuo Saiki left the crowd.

With his 'behind-the-scenes manipulation,' there shouldn't be any major problems with this exam.

Regardless of whether or not we purchase the previous year's exam questions, Class D's scores should improve slightly this time. We shouldn't have to worry about the class points being completely deducted, so we'll have enough points for daily expenses.

Moreover, no one would connect these things to Kusuo Saiki. In other people's eyes, this matter was overheard by Kikyo Kushida.

'I suppose this matter is now successfully completed.'

Kusuo Saiki was about to return to his seat when he heard a sound he least wanted to hear.

"Qi Mu, let's go together."

'...'

Kusuo Saiki turned his head with a hint of helplessness, his gaze meeting Kikyo Kushida's. He had never imagined that this matter would ultimately fall on him.

Although we're nominally friends, Qi Mu is the one I talk to the most.

'...'

I've had a lot of contact with Ike Kanji and the others, but involving them in this kind of thing will probably only make things more complicated. Those people are just idiots.

I find it hard to disagree with this.

[Right now, Qi Mu is probably the best choice. He should be happy because of my words, since there are definitely many boys in the class who want to join me. Our relationship might get even closer, making it easier for him to act according to my ideas. This operation should improve my standing among my classmates!]

'Aren't you overthinking things?'

Kusuo Saiki felt helpless; the situation was developing in a way that had exceeded his expectations.

He could also feel the hostile gazes of the people around him.

【Qi Mu? Is there such a person in our class?】

"Hey, hey, hey, it's been several days since school started, isn't it a bit much that you haven't even remembered my name?"

Why did Kushida choose him? Why not me?!

"I'm sorry, but if it were possible, I would certainly like to switch with you."